Centaurian

Centaurian - Chapter 9

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Synopis: When an unusual man comes into the protection of Officer Liam Phillips, Liam doesn't know what he's in for. His world gets broadened and turned upside down in this adventure of love, sex, gods, a one-quarter equine, and a vacation he will never forget.

Centaurian, By Rick Haydn Horst

Chapter 9

Chronos, the primordial god of Time, had grown accustomed to knowing all events on the timeline, and for as much as his knowing could burden him, it conveyed a sense of order and logic that he appreciated. It often pained him how language could not comment upon it without grotesque inaccuracies like the crude simplicity of cause "A" leading to effect "B". It stripped away all nuance leaving little else but false impressions, like a five-year old's black and white drawing of a universe that had decillions of colors. But he also knew that if language could depict a genuine description of the relationships between causes and effects, it would ultimately lose its audience in its profundity. However, as it stood, the complexities of Time, and all it entailed, defied description. He alone could comprehend, in its fullness, the beautiful tapestry of the universe's seemingly infinite number of causal chains, and as such, he thought of it as a work of art in his own private gallery.

No one noticed the furry muscle god and his concerned expression atop the staircase at the entrance to the bridge. He watched as Ronan invited Emma, William, Hephaestus, and Colt with him to Olympus. Wanting to show his support for them, as they turned to leave, they saw him dressed in a Centaurian uniform like Ronan's. His shirt held a depiction of an hourglass made from a lemniscate---an infinity symbol---with the name CHRONOS stitched into the fabric.

"Angus," said Ronan, surprised to see him. "Is something wrong?"

"We should talk," he said.

Ronan turned to his companions. "Pardon me, I must stop Time for a moment." And he did so.

Angus entered the bridge and stared at the others.

"What's the matter?" asked Ronan. "Have I done something?"

"Yes," he said, "but I carry the fault, and it's complicated so bear with me. As I said, I have never had anyone but myself capable of stopping Time, and I have never unlocked anyone with Time stopped, so this is unusual. The experience of Time is linear, and events---with a minimum of randomness---are largely a matter of cause and effect, but those causes and effects have always occurred on the timeline. However, you're having to stop Time just to get things done---and given your perspective, understandably so---but many large events are happening off the timeline, and it has fractured the timeline's continuity, a problem exacerbated by the inclusion of many unlocked people during these extra-timeline events. They create ripple effects that appear to have no causes. If that's not clear, please let me know."

"I unlocked over two-hundred gods on Olympus."

"Yes, and it's making the timeline messy, which is a real problem, not because it damages the timeline per se (it's pretty forgiving), but because it hinders my ability to help you. I must apologize for this necessity, but since I only know events that happen on the timeline, I have had to secretly follow you to help mitigate the problem, so the faster we get back to the timeline the better. From what I can see, things smooth out soon, but I think that happens from this conversation, and I think I help you here, so we can get back to normal. You could create a great many extra-timeline events trying to coax Zeus into telling you what he has done with Liam, but I can tell you from what I know of him, he would reveal nothing. I wish to spare you that. I hope you know by now that I can't do this for you by giving you the final solution---that would be T.M.I. (Too Much Information). However, I have a tiny tidbit that I believe I should give you because I don't know how you get it; you do not receive it on the timeline. I worry that it's my doing, and if I hold to my usual code of silence, by choosing not to tell you, I might alter events. Perhaps, from that alone, you can see how messy this is getting. So here it is, ask Emma about Metis."

"Ask Emma about Metis. Got it. I apologize for making a mess of the timeline."

"You're just doing what you must," said Chronos. "So that you know, if you must stop Time, keep the number of people unlocked with you to a bare minimum; it helps to reduce the problem. Here's why this is so important. Even with all your power, this is a limitation for us both. Events are accessible along the main timeline because of its perpetual existence."

"Right."

"The moment we stop Time, as now, we begin a secondary timeline and any event that occurs on that secondary timeline is only accessible to us while that timeline is active. If something should happen on a secondary timeline that has damaged the main timeline, you can't go back to that secondary timeline to search for its cause to change it because it no longer exists."

"Oh... Well, no wonder you've followed me around. So, none of the secondaries are connected."

Chronos shook his head. "If you should stop Time again later, you are beginning a new secondary timeline, independent of all the others. Once they end when you restart Time, they vanish."

"We really do need to get back to the timeline then. Thank you. I'm glad you're telling me this."

"I'm pleased you understand," said Chronos. "I will leave you to it." He descended the staircase.

"Thank you, Angus."

Ronan turned to Emma and unlocked her. "Hey."

She smiled a little and looked around. "Where's Chronos? Is something wrong?"

"Apparently, I'm making a mess of the timeline by all these off-timeline events, like the one we're having right now, and the more people unlocked with Time stopped the worse the mess gets. He says that we need to get back to the timeline as quickly as possible, so he gave me a hint. He told me that I should ask you about Metis. The name is familiar to me, but what can you tell me about her?"

"Metis...," she said, sounding almost nostalgic, "I haven't heard or thought of that name in centuries, but I think I know why he told you to ask. Metis was the goddess of wisdom and good counsel, Zeus's first wife, and Athena's mother. Someone prophesied that she would bear two of Zeus's children, and both would have great power, but the second, was a son who would dethrone him. So, Zeus followed his father's example, tricked Metis into turning herself into a fly, and swallowed her. Unfortunately for Zeus, she had already gotten pregnant. Somehow, she made her way to his head, and she gave birth to Athena who grew there, causing him terrible headaches. When it became unbearable, he asked Hephaestus to crack open his head with an ax, and Athena leaped from Zeus's head fully formed and wearing armor."

Ronan laughed. "Uh-huh," he said, with a look of extreme skepticism. "How can that possibly be true?"

"Because, like yourself, the gods are more than we appear. You continue to view yourself as a physical being, but you're not. I find it charming that you prefer to live in the illusion that you're more biological than you are, and I understand why you prefer it, but we are energy beings. We have these bodies as a conduit for experiencing this universe, so we may have the ability to touch and sense and fully feel our emotions. We intuitively understand that THIS"---she patted her chest---"is living, but as pure energy, we would have only existence. That is how Zeus can survive an ax cutting open his head to release his fully formed daughter."

"I see. So, what happened to Metis?"

"Zeus sealed himself up again, keeping her trapped inside his head. Zeus said that she became pure thought and has the same role she had before he swallowed her...as his wise counsel."

Ronan tipped his head in disbelief. "Ha! Right. I'm more inclined to believe the ax in the head story."

"Well," she said, "I saw Hephaestus wielding the ax, so I can attest that it's true, however, we have only Zeus's word about Metis, and it would be an easy lie."

"Angus had me ask you for a reason, and the only one that makes sense is if she's still there, and she knows where Zeus took Liam."

"I agree. Why do you call him Angus?"

"That's a story you'll have to hear another time. I have a question to ask you, and I want you to think hard about this, and decide what you want. Would you like to leave Dolos behind? You could stop having to find ways around your trickster nature to help someone and you could become Erastís. Whatever you want, Emma, it's yours."

She smiled. "I appreciate the offer. I have yet to tell William; he may not want me once he knows."

"If he rejects you, that's his prerogative, but in that event, let me talk to him. What sort of relationship would you want with him?"

"You may not know this, but I never married, and I'm unsure how I feel about marriage. So, while I hesitate to get my hopes up, I would love it if he was my companion and lover." She took a deep breath and leaned her back against the wall. "Perhaps, William and I should stay aboard the ship; we should have that conversation, and it would mean two fewer people to unlock when you get to Olympus."

The moment Ronan, Colt, and Hephaestus arrived on Olympus, the sun still shined high in the sky, but they found the once pristine marble mosaic of the courtyard fractured and sullied with piles of debris. Someone or something had mangled the gates and destroyed its surrounding columned structure.

A booming voice echoed, "Zeus!" Then came the sound of beating wings and a thunderous boom, followed by a shower of gold and marble chunks from the citadel which rained over the cliff edge behind them with lesser bits falling into the courtyard. Ronan stopped Time with a snap of his fingers. The sun in the sky vanished as though he had flicked a light switch, rendering all around them barely viewable in the glow from their mingled time-fields.

"Who the hell was that?" asked Colt.

Ronan shook his head and shrugged.

"You've mostly kept Time stopped," said Hephaestus, "and only a few actual minutes have passed since we left Zeus frozen here earlier, so whoever that is, they must have just gotten here."

"I will fly up and see who we're dealing with," said Ronan.

"Can you fly?" asked Colt.

Ronan burned away his shirt. "Should that really surprise you at this point? You two might want to move to the side of the courtyard. On the way up, my time-field will likely unlock a bit of falling debris. If your time-fields keep it unlocked, it might fall on you. While I'm gone, get to Zeus. We'll meet there."

As they backed away, Ronan turned, manifested his giant white wings, and took to the air causing some rock already in transit to fall farther as he rose into the sky.

Colt watched in amazement as Ronan flew out of sight and earshot. He asked, "Is my father a god?"

"No, I think he's something better. We should go." He gazed upon Ronan's son, smiled a little, and began leading him to the citadel above. They tromped through the debris to the gate. "I think you're a handsome man. Would you go out with me? That is the phrase, isn't it, `go out'?"

"But you're my first cousin," said Colt.

"I have news for you," he said as they climbed over the ruins, "all the gods are related. However, if that matters to you, just remember, you could never have my children. Beyond that one concern, is there anything applicable keeping us apart?" He helped him navigate some larger pieces of marble.

"You mean, other than the fact that I find you so shockingly attractive that you're well out of my league?"

"We have both seen one another naked," said Hephaestus. "All that should matter is that I liked what I saw. How about you?"

Colt raked his eyes over Hephaestus's body and jumped from the block he stood upon. "Of course, I liked it."

"Have you ever cheated in any of your past relationships?"

"No, definitely not."

"In that case," he said ushering Colt to the shortcut, "you sound perfect to me. If we do well together, I would swear upon the risk of ruining my reputation with your father, that I would be good to you, and I would never cheat."

"You barely know me, and already you speak of relationships. I've never had a relationship with a man."

"Good," he said, "neither have I. Zeus had arranged my previous marriages, and they both cheated. I figured if I could make my own choices, I would choose you. You are desirable, so I would feel awful if I held back and squandered this opportunity."

"When we get settled somewhere," said Colt, "I will agree to a date, and we'll see how it goes."

"May we have sex on the first date?"

"Looking at you, it would disappoint me if we didn't." Colt smiled to himself, as they entered the passage.

The landscape of Olympus followed the shape of the mountain, and Zeus's palace lay at the top. The peak of the mountain held his highest and most favorite throne, enabling him to look down upon all his kingdom and subjects.

Every beat of Ronan's wings lifted him toward the peak. He manifested time-spheres in his palms to use them as searchlights. Swooping upward at the top when he saw the damaged building, he realized he stared down the throat of a giant snake with fangs that matched his height.

"Shit! Don't touch the snake!" Ronan struggled to back away with the tips of his wings coming within inches of unlocking the creature frozen in a wide-mouthed, standing posture

The light from the time-spheres hadn't provided enough light, so he backed much farther away, increased their intensity, and released them to illuminate all of Olympus, and he saw the massive culprit.

Typhon---known as the father of monsters and the youngest son of Gaia and Tartarus---had an immensity that one might expect of a Titan, one-quarter the size of Olympus. He had the head and muscular torso of a man, the massive wings of a demon, and giant vipers for arms and legs. Ronan had caught him mid-flight, and the time-spheres unlocked the air around him. Unable to keep himself aloft by his wings, the shadow beneath Typhon caused him to drift down from his position as if he weighed no more than a feather. He would have crashed upon the buildings below, but the closer he came to the roofs, the shadow would grow darker, slowing his descent to a stop before causing damage to them. Once Time restarted, however, they would bear his full weight. The beast had destroyed Zeus's palace, flattening and pulverizing what he hadn't ejected from the mountaintop.

Ronan flipped his body in the air to change direction, soaring to the courtyard at Zeus's temple below.

With Time stopped, Zeus and the other frozen gods had once again become visible. It showed them in slightly muted tones like everything that hadn't had a time-field of its own. Colt and Hephaestus joined Ronan as he stood before Zeus staring at him.

"So, what will you do about Typhon?" asked Hephaestus.

"For now, nothing," he said. "Frozen in Time, he's of no danger to anyone. Zeus is a more pressing matter. I can't unlock him without taking his power, so when I take it, what should I do with it? Neither of you will get this reference, but it's sort of like Emma and the inches from the men aboard ship, I can't just hold onto it, it must go somewhere."

"Inches?" asked Colt.

Ronan laughed. "It's a funny story. Remind me to tell you later."

"I think that Zeus could absorb the power of a god for quite a while," said Hephaestus. "He would have done that with Poseidon, so you probably could absorb it."

He turned to him, his face an expression of having scented something rotten. "I consider his power tainted, so thank you for the idea but no."

"You have only one other option I can see," said Colt. "Use a container of some kind."

"That's what I was considering," said Ronan. "What container is strong enough?"

"If you froze it in Time," he said, "a container wouldn't need a lot of strength, would it?"

"That's a good point," said Hephaestus.

"What do you intend to do with it once you have it?" asked Colt.

"Not sure," said Ronan, "but I probably won't give it back to him."

"In my opinion," said Hephaestus, "a powerless person who sits on a throne is no monarch. If you take and keep Zeus's power from him, you're the king. Is that what you want?"

"Would that really be so bad?" asked Colt. "After all, what is a good king but a leader? You're already that without the label."

"There's far more to being a monarch than just acting as a leader," said Ronan. "But I seek neither a kingdom nor followers to lead. You are my friends and my son,"---he put his arm around Colt---"and I love you all very much. I've just wanted to help people, and for now, Liam needs my help the most. Whether I ever return Zeus's power to him remains in question, but that he must lose it for now, is certain. Thank you for the idea, son. That's what I'll do."

"How will you remove his power?" Colt asked.

"I'll siphon it off him like this..."

Hephaestus rested his hands on Colt's shoulders. "Let's not stand too close." He moved them back a few feet.

They watched as Ronan held out his hands and acted as though he pulled long and powerful lines of fiber from Zeus which he imitated as though he were spinning threads onto a single strand that wound around itself, and as he did, Colt watched as though his father had lost his mind because nothing was happening. When Ronan finished, he said, "See? Just like that."

"Okay," said Colt, "I'm impressed by your pantomimical theatrics, but let's see you actually do it."

"I just did," he said. "It's done. Now, I need a container for it."

Colt tipped his head back and glanced up at Hephaestus's grinning face, looking for some shared skepticism. "He's pulling my leg, isn't he?"

Ronan smiled. "Watch and learn." He moved to the side of where he had stood as they looked on. He held his hands out with his palms open as though he would catch a fly, and he paused before shouting, "Now!" The king unfroze, and Zeus wailed while his power extruded from every pore in thin fibers of golden light, and it spun together and wound itself onto a ball of glowing string at the exact spot Ronan meant it to. As it continued, Ronan waited, his hands at the ready.

"I have been patient with you, Zeus," said Ronan. "You have grown so comfortable with bullying and hurting others with impunity. But I had warned you; I'm not putting up with your shit."

As the last of Zeus's power left him, he fell to his hands and knees. Ronan manifested two halves of a diamond sphere and encapsulated the brilliant light before him. He twisted the two halves together and froze them in Time. As he held the crystalline container, lines of embering surrounded it in a layer of adamantine, and a layer of gold until he held a perfect golden sphere. He then applied a layer of cork and finally a white leather cover with the familiar red stitching around it and printed it with the words "Zeus" and "Powerball".

"He held no more energy than that?" Colt asked. "It wasn't much."

"The power in this is coherent, stable, and ultra-concentrated," said Ronan. "If I hadn't bothered it would probably end up the size of a beach ball. Here catch." He gave it a little toss. "I'm placing you in charge of that until I ask for it back."

"A baseball?"

"A last-second decision. I couldn't resist."

Hephaestus took Zeus's arm and lifted him to his feet. He looked a little pale and weakened.

"You'll regret this," said Zeus.

"You and I need to have a talk," said Ronan.

"I have nothing to say to you."

"A narcissist like you with nothing to say. I find that unlikely."

Zeus looked at Hephaestus who held his left arm and he read his shirt. "Who are you? You're not Hephaestus."

He ignored the question, and asked Ronan, "What now?"

Ronan manifested a set of handcuffs and proceeded to cuff him. "Zeus, I'm placing you under arrest for the abduction of Liam Phillips. The only right you have is the right to tell me what you've done with him."

"I might tell you if you tortured me, but you're too weak to do it."

Ronan drew close to Zeus's ear. "I've already done something FAR worse to you." He then turned and placed his hand on the golden door of Zeus's temple behind him. He gave the entire building its own time-field and proceeded to reconfigure the inside.

Upon opening the door, the spacious columned room with the reflecting pool and the giant marble statue of Zeus, which had sat at the far end, Ronan replaced with a classy Art Deco interior of a police station in bronzes, silvers, coppers, and various grays, lit by overhead and sconce lighting that used time-spheres for bulbs.

"I'm impressed," said Colt.

"I've seen a similar interior before," said Ronan, "but I can't remember where. It was probably a movie."

"It would look better in gold," said Zeus.

"Oh, what would you know?" asked Hephaestus. "When I redesigned Olympus, they wouldn't let me do anything interesting. They all wanted gold and marble, marble and gold. Ugh... what a bore."

Zeus looked up into his face and his brows drew together. "You are Hephaestus?"

"That's right," he said, "no thanks to you. Ronan removed and reversed your curse."

The interview room off to the left held a plain ebony wood table and chairs reminiscent of interrogation rooms of ages past with a single pendant light above it. Hephaestus shoved Zeus into the single chair on one side, and Ronan attached the links in the cuffs to the clip built into the tabletop.

"We have only two other chairs," said Ronan. "Hephaestus, may Colt sit on your knee?"

Colt whispered to his father, "Not subtle, are you?"

Ronan took a seat. "I've seen how you both look at each other."

"As long as I have a knee, Colt will always have somewhere to sit"---Hephaestus patted his right leg---"providing he promises not to keep his hands to himself."

Colt turned his gaze upon his father with a smirky smile.

"You're welcome," said Ronan, watching his son---baseball in hand---settle onto the leg Hephaestus offered him.

Ronan manifested a small clear dish that held a thin layer of Ambrosia. He gave it a sniff. "Mmm...I've made this one extra pungent," he said to Zeus. "Would you like a whiff?" He waved it under Zeus's nose, and when he smelled it, his head followed the dish as Ronan passed it before him. With a gentle hand, he laid the dish on the table just out of Zeus's reach.

"You can manifest Ambrosia," said Zeus.

"I've manifested quite a lot. I'm surprised you've just learned of it."

"I wasn't always watching you."

"Apparently so," Ronan said. "Do you know why you're here?"

"Because I did to you what you just did to me. I took from you what you love most."

"In an immediate sense, yes, but in the broader scope, no, that's not why you're here. Care to give it another guess?"

He kept eye contact with Ronan but turned his head a little. "Because I attacked the ship."

"It makes sense that you would expect me to act out of vengeance, but no, that's not the reason either."

"Prometheus wants my throne," he said with a little smile. "That's it, isn't it? He wanted revenge after I punished him for giving fire to the humans."

Ronan shook his head. "Prometheus doesn't want it, but you hadn't punished Prometheus, you tortured him, just as you have many others over the centuries. THAT is why you are here."

"So, all this is because I punished them like gods and not as mortals. Should I have incarcerated them in a place that would make them worse criminals by the time they leave? Or would you rather I sent them to bed without supper or put them in time-out for an hour?"

Ronan said, "I understand that gods would require a different sort of punishment from a mortal, but torture isn't punishment."

"It is for a god," he said. "I punished Prometheus with pain longer than I had anyone else, and it only lasted seventy-nine years."

"Oh...only seventy-nine..."

"You continue to look at this from a limited mortal perspective," said Zeus. "For an immortal being, a billion years is nothing."

"That's where you're wrong, it IS something when you willfully go out of your way to hurt someone, and everyone has their psychological breaking point, even gods."

"Of course, they do," he said, "how do you think I know when they've had enough? I should never have taken Chiron's offer; Prometheus was still defiant."

"Then you admit you only tortured any of them to break them."

"That's the purpose of punishment!" yelled Zeus.

"There's a difference between giving a penalty for an infraction and subjecting them to cruelty. When you tortured someone, your efforts had not intended to do anything but destroy their agency, to supplant their will for yours, and don't tell me you don't see a difference. When Hera, Athena, Apollo, and Poseidon tried to overthrow you for your tyranny, you hung Hera by her hands from the sky using golden chains with anvils attached to her feet and you forced her to stare into the abyss."

"That only lasted four days."

"I don't care how long it lasted, it's torture! And I know you know the difference because you only punished Apollo and Poseidon. You took away their power and made them work for King Laomedon for wages for a while. So, you do know the difference. Why would you use torture if you know another way?"

"My divine will is sovereign."

"That might still play well in the nosebleed section where they can't see what you are, but those of us who sit near the orchestra will not accept that. To us, you're an obvious tyrant. That's what has started all this, and why you're here." Ronan's eyes stared upon his quarry. "Did you enjoy torturing them?"

"Again, what you call torture," said Zeus, "I call punishment, and I never punished them for my enjoyment."

"Wow," said Colt, "you spoke around that question so smoothly one would think you were a politician."

"Indeed," said Ronan, "Just because you hadn't `punished' them for your enjoyment wouldn't mean that you hadn't enjoyed it."

"So, what if I did?" he asked. "I'm King of the Gods. I do as I please."

"You mean were' King of the Gods and did' as you pleased," said Hephaestus. "All that's in the past now."

"Things would have been far worse without me," said Zeus. "They needed a heavy hand. You don't know what they were like."

"They reflected your leadership," said Ronan. "You hadn't brought out the best in them, they just followed your awful example. Not that I can fully blame you for that. After all, your example swallowed your siblings."

Ronan noticed a twitch in Zeus's left eye.

"Would you like another sniff of Ambrosia?" asked Ronan. "He lifted the dish and waved it under Zeus's nose again. Unable to stop himself, he inhaled its scent, and the twitch of his left eye happened again.

"What will you do with me?" asked Zeus.

"You've accepted that I have more power than you?"

"You can take away my power, and you can manifest Ambrosia. None of the gods can do that, so what are you?"

"I'm unsure what I am, specifically," he said, "but I can tell you what I was not. I was not a threat to you until you believed the lie about how I would dethrone you, and you made me a threat to you by your own actions. So, you turned a lie into a prophecy, and you ensured it was fulfilled."

Zeus stared at the table in thought.

"This isn't the first time that's happened though. Our father Cronus did the same thing. Uranus told him one of his children would dethrone him, and only by his belief in its truth had he acted in a way that ensured it came true. If our father were an amazing parent, loving, good, and kind. You all would have loved him so much that the thought of overthrowing him would have been unthinkable, but he just couldn't do that. Evil begets evil, but that cycle ends with me."

When the twitch in Zeus's eye became more pronounced, Ronan waved the Ambrosia under Zeus's nose again.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm helping your captive find her way out of your head."

His eyes went wide. "No!"

Ronan yelled into Zeus's face. "Metis, if you can hear me, exit through his sinus."

Zeus could feel the fly inside his head moving around, and the moment he sensed her in his sinus, he began to sniff hard like he had a head cold. Ronan manifested a feather and began tickling Zeus's nose with it. It had reached the point he couldn't control it, he inhaled twice, and his face contorted into a grimace while trying to hold it in.

"Give it up, Zeus. Not even you have the power to overcome the compulsion to sneeze."

Zeus squeezed his eyes shut and with the force strong enough to strain his vocal cords, he violently convulsed, blowing Metis from his head. They could hear the buzzing wings of the fly as she soared around the room. Ronan held out the dish of Ambrosia in his palm. The fly went right to it and began drinking. "Once you've had enough to transform yourself, I will heal you. I promise you'll feel better in no time."

With a hoarse voice, Zeus said, "I will have her loyalty no matter what I may have done. She loves me."

"Ha!" said Ronan. "You wish..."

"How long was she in there?" asked Colt.

"Thousands of years," said Hephaestus. "Since the end of the Titanomachy."

Ronan set the dish onto the floor, and within a minute Metis had drunk enough to transform back into herself. It happened slowly and with struggle. Zeus held her captive in a confined space the whole time, and only Ronan's removal of Zeus's power allowed her to break free. As she transformed, she couldn't manifest herself some clothes, she stretched and had trouble standing upright, but once she had, she turned, saw Ronan, and began to cry from relief. As Ronan hugged her, she wrapped her arms around him. After he healed her of her aches and pains, he gave her some power and manifested her some clothing, a snowy white chiton like the one Hera wore. She kissed Ronan on the cheek, thanked him, and walked over to the table where Zeus sat, his hands manacled to the table. She reared back with her right hand and slapped Zeus hard enough to have knocked out most anyone else's teeth.

"You bastard!" she yelled into his face. "How dare you betray me! And to think I loved you. I can't kill you, but you are dead to me!" She turned to Ronan. "It's a good thing you can stop Time, he took Liam to the underworld. He wanted to drop him into Tartarus, but Hades stopped him. Zeus was so angry over it that he immediately teleported to Mount Etna and released Typhon from the underground chamber. He will come to Olympus and destroy everything."

"Typhon is already here. I froze him in Time."

Zeus tipped his head back in indignation. "I figured if I can't have Olympus, then no one will."

"Why hadn't you taken him to Tartarus?" asked Ronan.

"I tried, but Etna was as close as I could get him. That's how dangerous he is. I wish I had known you could stop Time. I doubt you could win if you fought him in a fair fight as I had. Using your ability to stop Time is cowardly and cheating."

"Oh!" He sat across from Zeus again. "I guess I'll have to fight him now, just to prove to you my bravery because I so value your opinion." He shook his head and laughed. "You're pathetic. I can't imagine why any of the gods support you, but you have given me my answer to what I will do with you. If your throne means so much to you, I insist that you keep it." He leaned in close. "You wanted Typhon to destroy Olympus, but he only destroyed your palace and thrones before I stopped him, so I will leave you to reign as king for all eternity from the remnants of Typhon's rampage. I will ensure that future generations remember you as nothing more than Zeus, the Mad Tyrant King of Olympus, and a prime example of the follies of cruelty, unkindness, and greed. But not to worry, your wife Hera will be right here with you. I wouldn't want to separate you when it's clear you deserve each other." He froze Zeus in Time, stood, and turned to his companions to make plans.

Hephaestus would return Colt to the ship, and Metis had requested that she see her daughter Athena, so Hephaestus would take her to the secret house.

Once Ronan took care of the Typhon problem, he turned all of Olympus into a unique kind of cage. He couldn't allow any of them to hurt people or start a civil war. So, he did the only thing he could do, given the circumstances. Apart from Zeus, all the other gods on Olympus would keep their power, but it would only have any effect within the shield he placed around the entire complex atop Mount Olympus. Among all the gods, only Zeus could break The Great Seal preventing anyone from teleporting away from Olympus. And with Zeus's power gone, he couldn't break the seal or teleport himself away. Ronan hadn't exactly imprisoned them though, not even Zeus. They had three choices. They could stay and keep their power. They could evolve, and if so, they could send word to Ronan, at which point, they would talk about it. Or they could just choose to walk out, but in choosing to pass through the fully restored gate, they chose to pay the price for their freedom. The shield would absorb their power, and they would find themselves on Earth to live out the remainder of their days as a human. Once Ronan restored the natural flow of Time, he gave them the news of their situation, and they were not happy, making many empty threats. Afterward, Ronan left them to contemplate their lives there as he journeyed to the underworld on his own.

Unlike with Olympus, one doesn't teleport to the underworld without an open invitation. Just as the rites for the dead had structure and customs, Hades had structure and customs in his realm, and he took those things seriously. Hades could be a stickler on formality. Ronan felt that by Hades having saved Liam, he owed it to him to honor his traditions, and enter through the front door as any respectful visitor should. Of all the gods, he wanted to keep on the good side of Hades most.

On his path to the underworld, he crossed the divine terminator to the dark side of the realm, the side influenced by many deities like Nyx---the primordial goddess of the night but presided over in whole by Hades himself. Before the darkness, however, came the twilight.

Lost in thought, Ronan repeatedly tossed the baseball he carried as he strolled the pathway in the growing darkness. He caught it label-side up, displaying the word TYPHON.

He had followed a trail to the edge of a meadow where he reached darkness and the first of five rivers. On the River Acheron, he found an ancient dock lit by a single lantern hanging from a rusted pole. The darkness and the glowing mist upon the flowing water obscured its opposite shore. Not wishing to lose the ball in the water below, he tightened his grip on it and took a few cautious steps onto the dock and waited for the ferryman. Two lights approached from the mist, and once its origin came into view, he saw some sort of black punt boat. The prow and stern of the ship had curves made to hold lanterns for the punter to see.

Many human authors have described the man who propelled it as generally silent, ugly, and filthy, sometimes wearing a dark cloak with a conical cap, or something a bit more distinguished, but Ronan only saw a slender naked man in his thirties with long dark hair kept in a ponytail. He hadn't an ounce of fat on him, but otherwise, he looked clean and healthy.

When the man came within earshot he said, "Hello, Ronan."

When the boat reached the dock, he asked the man, "You are Charon?"

"That's right. I'm Charon, son of Nyx."

"It's good to meet you." Ronan studied him for a moment. "Forgive me, but you look nothing like any description I've ever heard."

"That's because not everything in the underworld is as it seems. How I look depends on who I'm picking up. Some people deserve the honor of an armored warrior, or a dashing young man in a nice suit to ferry them, but for others, I'm nothing more than a hideous man in greasy rags. It's all part of the service, and I always give them what they know they deserve."

"And I deserve...?"

Charon held out his hand to help him aboard. "The truth. Are you ready?"

"Should I not pay you?"

His mouth tightened, brows lowered, and he shook his head. "Nah, that's just for the tourists."

Ronan laughed as he climbed aboard and settled himself on the opposite side from Charon to balance the boat. "I would never have thought you would have a sense of humor."

"I usually never get a chance to express any humor." He pushed off from the dock with his punting stick. "Most people I ferry are so morose with all that dread and fear, but I suppose, Acheron isn't the `river of woe' for nothing."

"How far can you take me?" Ronan watched as the glowing mist surrounded them.

"I know a shortcut to Hades's palace, but we still must pass through the Styx, and I guarantee she will stop us. The Goddess Styx has remained a staunch supporter of Zeus since the Titanomachy, and I've never known her to keep quiet."

"Anything important I should know about her?"

"Avoid flattery. She hates that. She hates a lot of things, actually, but then she is the personification of hatred, so that follows." He thought for a moment. "Ahh... Oh! Kratos was her son, so there's that too."

Ronan palmed his face. "Oh, shit..."

"She has a respect for strength of will. That's why she has stood by Zeus. I have heard how you are, Ronan. You're a good and kind man. Personally, I find that a pleasant change for someone as powerful as you, but she might have a different opinion."

"I appreciate the warning."

They traveled a fair distance, but made a turn, following a narrow and shallow passage through the thickets which barely fit the width of the boat, and Ronan could tell Charon had difficulty punting when the boat's bottom scraped the bed of his shortcut. Ronan concentrated and holding his hands out he lifted the boat a few inches to allow it to skim the surface, and Charon easily punted them through the channel.

"Thank you," he said. "I wasn't sure we would make it."

"Not a problem," said Ronan. "I wouldn't want you to damage your boat just to help me."

With a lift of his brows, he gave a tiny jerk of his head as he punted along. "You really are unique, aren't you?"

When they reached the mouth of the channel, the River Styx lay before them, Charon punted into the flowing water, and the moment he had, the boat moved far faster than his punt could account for, and Charon nearly fell from his vessel. An unseen hand dragged the boat counterclockwise in an arc, causing them to go around and around in an ever-tightening spiral. When they reached the middle of the developing whirlpool, the boat turned on its center axis upon a column of water as the rapid swirl around them receded to reveal a ten-foot trough, isolating them from the rest of the river.

Ronan forced the boat to stop spinning, and over the sound of the rushing water that swirled around them, Ronan yelled out, "Styx! Show yourself!"---she seemed disinclined---"Don't think you have me trapped here. I can leave whenever I like. I'm merely allowing you the chance to speak to me, so if you have something to say, say it now. Otherwise, I'm leaving!"

The rapidly moving trough shallowed enough for a nude woman who emerged from it to walk upon the water around the boat with her head the height of Ronan's, meeting him eye to eye. It was Styx, the Oceanid, goddess, nymph, daughter of the Titan Oceanus, the personification of hatred, and oath protector. Not ordinary by any means, her aqua-colored skin glowed brightly in the dim light from the lanterns of the boat, and her eyes fixed upon Ronan with an evil, contemptuous glare that might have killed any mortal man. A meticulous braid of hair, the color of the bluish depths Ronan had witnessed in the ocean, circled her head like a garland. He might have thought her beautiful, if not for the hostile expression marring her features. She said nothing for almost a minute as she strode around the boat.

"I'm guessing you're a tad miffed with me," he said. "Could we get on with why, please? I have things to do. Is it about Kratos?"

She stopped before Ronan. "You destroyed my son honorably, and he kept his oath to Zeus. I am not angry about that. I think oaths should mean something; wouldn't you agree?"

"Not necessarily."

"Not necessarily?" She sounded completely taken aback.

"I find it curious how so many people, including gods, find nuance so alien to them. I understand that it complicates matters, but have the gods no concern for circumstances?"

She looked upon Ronan as if he had spoken a foreign language.

Seeing his words had fallen upon uncomprehending ears, he said, "Let's just get to your point."

"Long ago, Zeus had the gods take an oath on the waters of the River Styx...on me. He bestowed that honor upon me because, among all the Titans, I gave my fealty to Zeus first." Whereupon she just stopped talking as if that explained everything.

"And...?"

"You are helping gods break their oath with no repercussions."

"If their oaths were anything like the one Kratos gave Zeus, I don't think I care. And what repercussions?"

"If anyone should break their oath, they must drink from my waters which would make them comatose for a year, they would be denied Ambrosia from then onward, and when they awaken, they would either be banished or excluded from everything for nine years, and they would live in disgrace for all eternity."

"Who ensures these punishments are met?"

"Zeus."

"Well, Zeus wouldn't leave me and my loved ones alone, so I've taken his power from him, and in doing so, I've voided all oaths."

"You dethroned Zeus..."

"Some of the gods threatened civil war if I dethroned Zeus, so I insist that he keep his title for as long as he likes. So, he can remain your king if you want; I couldn't care less about such things. However, Olympus now serves as a sort of holding place until they decide what they want to do. They're welcome to grow up, stay there, or leave whenever they like, but walking through the gate now exacts an extremely heavy price. As for all those who don't live on Olympus---such as yourself---if any of the gods go out of their way to harm anyone, they'll find themselves on Olympus with the same three choices. As I told the gods there, `just play nice with others and mind your own business,' that's all I ask."

"No...," she said in disbelief, "you can't have."

"I have; it's already done. Zeus thought I would dethrone him, so he released Typhon to wreck Olympus, because if he couldn't have Olympus then no one would. But Ares warned me emphatically that I shouldn't thwart the will of the king. So, I wouldn't undo the damage Typhon caused when he destroyed Zeus's palace, but I figured, why should any of the others be homeless just because Zeus is so selfish? I hadn't left Typhon on Olympus, of course; he's a menace." He held up the baseball that contained a miniaturized Typhon frozen in Time.

"He's inside that?"

"Yes, I'm taking him to Hades as a gift."

"What about the Ambrosia delivered to Olympus every day?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Ronan, "because of the shield, that can no longer happen. No outside help can enter Olympus, but Chronos tells me the natural source was drying up anyway. Speaking of that, would either of you care for a glass?" Ronan manifested two goblets of Ambrosia and handed them to both Styx and Charon.

Charon immediately began guzzling his, but she sniffed the contents of her own. "You can manifest Ambrosia?" She drank of it.

"Yes. So, all the Ambrosia the gods receive must come through me. Outside of Olympus, I won't lord that over any of you. I'm hoping you will one day reflect my goodwill toward you into the world. I encourage all of you to evolve. I know you can, but as the personification of hatred, you might have the hardest time finding some love in your heart, but I believe in you."

"But no one can manifest Ambrosia," she said. "How?"

"The same way I can destroy a god," he said. "I'm something else. Something...more. You have my word that I will gift a rundlet of Ambrosia as fine as you hold in your hand to Hades for all his underworld feasts, so the gods won't go without."

"You are not as I expected," she said. "I don't know how to take you."

"I'm hoping you'll take me in the same spirit I take you, in a live and let live sort of sense."

"I wouldn't know how," she said.

"Oh, Styx, you're a river! I should think going with the flow would come naturally to you. You could just think about it for a while. Things will be different, yes, but there's nothing wrong. Life will be good; you'll see. And if either of you ever needs me, call me. We will discuss the problem, and we'll figure out a way to solve it. In the meantime, however, may Charon and I go? I need to get to Liam."

Momentarily befuddled, she let them go, and while Ronan knew their dependence on him for Ambrosia would tend to sway them into compliance with his extraordinarily small request that they behave themselves, as he said, he had no intention of lording it over them. He wouldn't have to, their need for Ambrosia was so great that they would view him in a different light anyway, but he couldn't help that. The natural source was drying up, and only he could produce it, so that was that.

In the darkness, they turned a bend in the river, and from the light of the torches upon it, Ronan saw the gates of Hades's palace, and a silhouette of Cerberus, the three-headed hound, within the dark metal gates. He patrolled the grounds for living intruders and escapees of the dead. Fortunately, near the dock lit by the brilliant glow of a bident, he saw Liam standing alongside Hades.

The moment they were close enough, Ronan sprung from the boat, ran across the dock, took Liam into his arms, and kissed him. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, thanks to Hades. Zeus nearly shoved me off into Tartarus!"

"He won't bother us again."

Hades said, "Zeus's actions up until this were bad enough, but he crossed a very personal line, so I accept your decision on whatever you do to him. What was your decision regarding our brother?"

"I hadn't destroyed him, but I took his power," said Ronan, "and whether I ever give it back is up to Zeus. I want to thank you for saving Liam. I respect you for that."

Hades gave a little nod and a thoughtful smile. "I can tell."

"Oh! I have a gift for you." He handed Hades the ball.

"You have gifted me a baseball?"

"Read what it says."

He turned the ball around. "Typhon..." He pointed to the ball. "Is this?"

Ronan nodded. "Zeus released him from Mount Etna. He knew Typhon would destroy Olympus. I arrived, froze him in Time, and eventually shrank him down before I put him inside that."

"Astonishing," he said and held up the ball. "Typhon was extremely powerful, and for as much as we gods can do, none of us have this much power. That's why we stuffed all the troublemakers into Tartarus. So, thank you for this. It's certainly an improvement; he takes up much less space this way. I shall display him upon my mantle. I would invite you in to show you around and meet Persephone, but I know you have a lot to do, and a tour of the castle can take quite a while. From now on, you both have an open invitation to visit anytime, and feel free to teleport directly."

"Thank you, we will, especially when making a delivery of Ambrosia."

"Chronos informed me of the Ambrosia issue. We're grateful you can supply it. Well, I won't keep you. I'm sure the others wish to see Liam safely where he belongs. I will see the two of you again soon."

When Hades teleported back into his palace, Ronan saw that Charon and his boat had gone, so with no one left to bid farewell, they teleported back to the CS Fritz Himmel.

Aboard the ship, the crew typically kept busy with maintenance, cleaning duties, and that never-ending struggle against the deleterious effects of the sea. However, with Ronan having left the vessel anchored off the coast of Italy in perfect condition, the crew had nothing to do, so the captain had given most of them time off until needed. At first, they either meandered through the ship marveling at the miracle of its condition, or they stood at the deck railing staring at the city of Genoa, a view they shouldn't have had for a few more days. Ronan had won over the crew, including those initially skeptical of him and his intentions. They had seen far too much of what he could do to think it nothing more than a trick, and his repeated defense of them spoke volumes.

When Ronan led Liam into Emma's cabin, it pleased their friends to see him in one piece.

"Liam, I would like to introduce the god Hephaestus, blacksmith to the gods and a dear friend of mine. And I also want to introduce the demigod Colt Stallion, formerly named Elias Adrianus, billionaire, and as a son of Chiron, he is my son. Colt, Hephaestus...this is the demigod Liam Phillips, a former police officer of the Key Biscayne Police Department, my protector, and... husband?" He gazed upon Liam for confirmation.

"As far as I'm concerned," he said.

"And husband," Ronan said to Hephaestus and Colt.

"It's good to meet you," said Hephaestus.

Colt shook Liam's hand. "I've seen you!" Colt said. "You picked my father from the ground in the park on Key Biscayne."

"Yes, I did! You have seen me? How had that come about?"

"Kakia," said Colt. "When she came to my office in New York, she had with her a tablet that held a video of the whole thing. From just before Henri transferred my father with the eternal flame to Ronan's former human self, all the way to the next morning when you drove off with him to what I must presume was the hospital."

"Someone recorded that?" Ronan shook his head at the audacity.

"Apparently so," he said.

"Well, Ronan," said Emma, "William and I have talked."

"What have you concluded?" he asked.

"Dolos needs to go. I haven't been him in so long, I can't remember what it felt like to be myself in honesty rather than deceit."

"I love her no matter what," said William, "but she's unhappy as she is, and if she needs Dolos gone, then I support that."

Ronan gestured for her to come to him. "Tell me what you specifically want."

"I want to walk away from this ship Erastís, the lover, a self-determinate deity of any sex or gender I choose, and if I want to be Emma Nordstrom, then that's who I am, when I am, and in truth. I want to help people the way I do best and eliminate the constraint of it being a lie. Could you help me do that?"

Emma stood before him, and he turned her around, placed his hands on her back, and concentrated. "All the gods can look however they want and always could, but they all have a constraint preventing it from being true by their nature. Poseidon told me he had been equine many times, and---like you as Emma---Poseidon is the horse when he's a horse, but even while being that, he's still no less `the god of the sea', so I comprehend what you're asking. Your mother is Nyx, the goddess of night. She has imbued you with dark energy, and that's what constrains you to the lies and deceit. I admire your strength of will. I find it amazing you've gotten this far in your evolution, but unlike the others who have evolved, you need to change your fundamental nature. To remove the restraint is to remove Dolos from you, so let me do this. Concentrate hard on being Erastís. This will feel warm, but it shouldn't hurt you."

She did so, and as Ronan fed her new energy with his left hand, he drew out the darkness with his right. It emerged as a sooty substance from Emma's back and swirled in Ronan's palm like a black cloud the size of his fist. "There, it's done."

Emma turned as everyone gathered around to see what Ronan held. William wrapped his arms around Emma's waist from behind and gazed over her shoulder.

"What will you do with it?" she asked.

Ronan transformed the cloud of dark energy into a small, shiny winged black bird with an orange beak like those indigenous to the area around Genoa. It sat in the hollow of Ronan's palm as though it were nesting. "Everyone, say hello to Dolos."

"So, that is Dolos," said Emma. "Why don't I feel any different?"

"It's as you told me," he said, "this hasn't been you for a long time. I'm unsure that you should feel different, but the experience of your life will be entirely different from now on. Hephaestus, would you open the window, please?"

"The windows don't open," said William.

"Sure, they do," said Hephaestus. He laid his hand onto the glass, removed the entire pane like he had a suction-cup hand, and smiled at William.

William shook his head and rolled his eyes. "I forget who I'm with."

Ronan helped the bird into Emma's hand. "I think you should be the one to release him."

She stroked the little bird on the way to the window. "Well, Dolos, I would say I hate to see you go, but that would be a lie, and I don't do that anymore, so off you go." When she tossed it out the window, it flew away, and Hephaestus replaced the glass in its frame. "So, am I Erastís now?" she asked Ronan.

"Yes, but one last thing," he said. He laid his hand on her shoulder and increased her ability to hold energy, causing her to feel a surge of power. "There, not only are you free to be yourself, but you have more power, and you can teleport many people."

Emma giggled and hugged him. She then manifested herself a Centaurian uniform like Ronan's. It highlighted her shapely form and had ERASTÍS across her chest with a little red heart. "Do you like?" she asked William.

He smiled, nodded eagerly, and kissed her.

Ronan raised his hand. "By a show of hands, who wants off this ship?"

They all wanted to go, and while Colt and Hephaestus hadn't lived aboard, Emma, William, Liam, and Ronan couldn't wait to see the CS Fritz Himmel in their proverbial rear-view mirror.

They stood upon the main deck ready to go, as Captain Stettler, the first mate Paul Hurst, and the entire crew wanted to wish them farewell.

"Well, captain," said Ronan, "thank you for your patience with us. You could have proven yourself far less understanding, and I wish to apologize for the disruption we caused aboard the ship."

"Think nothing of it," he said, shaking Ronan's hand. "I should be thanking you for all you've done for us, and you've given us an unforgettable adventure on our transatlantic crossing. I underestimated you repeatedly, and for that, I apologize. It has been a privilege to have met you all and had you aboard. Since the threats to us are no longer an issue, all the crew has decided to remain except for William, and the company is sending us a new purser who will be here this afternoon. We have arrived early in Genoa, so we haven't permission to dock; they schedule these things for a reason. The company also wants me to thank you for restoring the ship; it saved them time and money. They wish to apologize that one of their employees has leaked onto the internet all the video footage from the ship's uploads to the company's server. It seems they've gone viral, and the number of people who know about the gods, you, and what you are capable of grows exponentially. The public and the media have a great many questions and concerns."

"I bet they do," said Liam.

"In a world of internet users eager for amazing content, I figured that would happen," said Ronan, "and I accept it. They'll get their answers over time, but eventually, they must grow accustomed to our presence."

"What about the paparazzi?" asked Paul. "They don't get used to anyone's presence; you get used to theirs."

Emma said, "That's alright, we have ways around virtually anything."

"So, where will you go now?" asked the captain.

"That's a good question," said Liam.

Emma spoke up. "We have an enormous villa with a dozen bedrooms on Mykonos. When Ronan said he wanted to go home. Prometheus and I ensured we had somewhere to go."

"That's not big enough for everyone," said Hephaestus.

"I intend to form a new island in the Aegean Sea for a permanent place to resettle the gods from Olympus," said Ronan, "but like Rome, it can't be built in a day. You, my friend, will soon be extraordinarily busy."

"You will let me design the whole thing?" asked Hephaestus.

"Once I make the island. All I ask is that you do what you think is best with it, and not let them bully you again into producing some marble and gold nightmare."

With all business complete, all apologies made, and every goodbye said, Emma used her extended power and teleported them to Mykonos.

The Grecian LGBTQ mecca of Mykonos, an island of the Cyclades of the Aegean Sea, had picturesque views and villages, many beaches, and an active nightlife with frequent parties at various locales. Prometheus had informed Emma about the villa, and she secretly bought it on their journey to Genoa. To Emma's mind, it presented the perfect location for their home. They teleported to the vast stone courtyard behind the white multi-leveled limestone villa, with its twelve bedrooms, and fourteen bathrooms.

Colt started laughing when he realized where they were. "Oh my," he said, gazing about.

"What's so funny?" asked Liam.

"I built this house about a decade ago."

"You lived here?" asked Ronan.

"No, I bought the property and had it built for an investment. I've done that all over the world. The agent sold it immediately to some Turkish billionaire. I can't remember his name now. It seems like it was Murat something."

"Murat," said Emma, "yes, that's the man I bought it from."

"You had the money for this?" asked William.

"Prometheus did," she said.

"I see some damage to that stone wall over there," said Hephaestus. "Looks like Murat hadn't taken care of it."

Liam peeked over the edge of the enormous empty infinity pool behind them. "The pool has a crack."

"I suspect he used it for parties," said Colt.

"I bought it `as is'," said Emma, "so the house isn't in pristine condition."

"I think I can take care of that," said Ronan. He set his bag onto a stone block of the courtyard beneath his feet, squatted, and laid his hands flat on the stone. "When I removed the curse from Hephaestus, I discovered that I could see beyond what my eyes can see around me, including other realms and universes. Let me see what the house can tell me." He concentrated for a moment. "The house isn't livable. It has no water, no electricity, no furnishings, or necessities at all. I see damage throughout the house, and the construction crew hadn't built the pool properly; that's why it cracked." He searched to see how owners of the house in other universes had decorated it, he found one he liked and duplicated some of their decor. He sent pulses of energy into the entire property. He cleaned it, made repairs, and manifested everything they needed to turn the empty house into their home, like furniture and linens, but he also stocked the cabinets and refrigerator with groceries and dishes, and he filled the bar with an array of alcohol and glassware. He made a correction to the pool's design and filled it with water. He gave the house a permanent water and electrical source, and lastly, he took care of the landscaping. When he opened his eyes and stood, the courtyard had outdoor furniture and a retractable sun sail above them to shade part of the space.

"Looks like we've moved in," said Liam.

"If you dislike anything I chose," he said to them, "you're welcome to change it." He suggested the others find bedrooms, as he wanted some time alone with Liam. He embraced him. "Had Zeus made you afraid?"

Liam rested his head on Ronan's shoulder. "No, I wasn't afraid," he said. "I knew if you had to tear the universe apart to find me, you would."

He nodded. "If it came to that."

"And then you would put it all back together with an apology for the inconvenience."

Ronan laughed. "You know me so well. While I looked the house over, I noticed that about forty of our friends are inside the main part of the house waiting to give me a surprise party."

"Are they?"

"Yeah, that's terribly nice of them, but I need to leave for a minute, and I'll be right back. Okay?"

"Where are you going?"

"I need to take care of something important."

"Should I go with you?"

"I wish you could, but due to the circumstances, the fewer people the better. I want to do this before I go upstairs, but you go on up and I will be right behind you. This won't take but a minute."

"Okay, be careful," said Liam.

"As careful as I can be." He held Liam, kissed him, and left.

Liam hurried up the stone staircase with their bags, and he smiled to see all the gods and goddesses Ronan had freed from Zeus's tyranny, even Apollo, Hades, and Persephone attended.

"Where is he?" asked Athena.

"He'll be here in a minute. He had something important to take care of."

Ronan walked up the staircase accompanied by a young man. When everyone inside the house saw who it was, they were so happy. Felix Raposo stood there wearing a Centaurian uniform with LUCKY FOX across his chest and a depiction of a little stylized fox head stitched above it. Kakia had destroyed him before he had the chance to dress, and they could take nothing from the hotel room, so Ronan manifested him some clothing. Everyone rejoiced at seeing Felix.

The party was Prometheus's idea. He set the whole thing into motion when Ronan had made it safe to come out of hiding. Standing at the front of the group, he had raven hair with a matching beard. The classically handsome god wore a black bikini swimsuit, and an unbuttoned white shirt. He smiled at Ronan who wrapped his arms around him and hugged him tightly.

Athena spoke, "We know we haven't a permanent place to call our own yet, but we've talked it over, and we want you to know that we're in no hurry for it. The estate in the Norwegian wilderness is comfortable and more than adequate, so take your time and find the perfect spot."

"I appreciate your lifting the pressure," said Ronan who laid his hand onto the bar beside him and began manifesting enough glasses of Ambrosia for everyone to have some. "I have made plans; I just need some patience. Here," he said, "everyone, please, take a glass of Ambrosia." He made sure to give one to Felix. He saw no sense in losing him again.

Once everyone had a glass, Athena continued, "We want to thank you for everything you've done for us. We could not have freed ourselves on our own, and we want you to know that we understand you didn't have to do it. You did it out of the kindness of your heart and we will be forever grateful. So, a toast..."---she raised her glass, followed by everyone else---"to Ronan Stallion, the Centaurian, our friend."

When the toasting with Ambrosia ended, Angus brought in many of his friends and the DJ from his nightclub. They invited many of the crewmen from the ship and teleported them to the party. Colt invited Carl and his husband Wesley. They agreed to come, and since Ronan had given Colt the ability to teleport, he quickly learned how and brought them to the house---much to their surprise and delight.

The alcohol flowed freely from the home's fully stocked bar.

Ronan met Caleius, the designer of his uniform, he talked to him about his upgrades.

The party continued well into the night. They drank, conversed, and skinny dipped in the pool, but at some point, Ronan and Liam snuck off to their bedroom to make love until sunrise. Upon Liam awakening atop Ronan late that morning, they met a beautiful day.

"How about a final trip to my apartment to get my things?" asked Liam. "I need to hand in my weapon and badge to the department and let the remainder of my leave serve as my notice. If I have a tough time convincing them it's me, I might need some of your magical persuasion."

"I think that can be arranged," said Ronan. "It's early in Miami, would you like to go to the nude beach here on Mikonos for a bit? We can both fly down there."

"Me, fly? You're the angelic one."

Ronan left the bed. "Well, I say you're my guardian angel, and every superhero needs a sidekick. So, let's go Angel Boy, you need a flying lesson." Ronan tossed Liam his Centaurian uniform shirt. It read ANGEL BOY across the chest and he could see a little halo sitting at a jaunty angle on the "B".

"Now I regret pushing that superhero idea."

The End.