Aftergods

Two months ago his aunts opened Pandoras box (v2) and let the gods out of their cages.

One month and twenty nine days ago the world lost it’s shit when the gods found new homes. The gods are dead though, they are not alive anymore, just their essence lives on.

New gods, Aftergods were created and there are so fucking many. Greek, Norse, Egyptian and Roman were all trapped together. Any immortal being was sucked in.

One week ago Zeph and his aunts realized that not only had Daedalus created the new Pandoras box, but another weapon. The Godkiller. Built as a failsafe if the box failed, but since the box worked he had no use for it, so he never finished it, useless. It had the potential to wipe ever god form the face of the earth but thank the dead gods it wasn’t finished. In the hands of the National Archives, irrelevant and locked away.

Zeph and his aunts had been laying low since they fucked the world over, training and learning. Zeph being an Aftergod, Melia being a witch, and Sonias soul being tied to a powerful staff.

Three days ago Aunt Melia was kidnapped by some fucking cultists. Right out of the apartment. They wore Grecian theatre masks and were led by their head witch bitch Kalliope current host of Hecate.

Two days ago while they hunted for Melia, Sonia was attacked by some government goons. They haven’t figured out why yet but she’s okay. Perks of being a sorceress.

One day ago a boy around my age knocked on our door and said he could help. His name is Adonis, he’s an aftergod, but isn’t sure of which one yet. Has an affinity for knives and guns though.

WASHINGTON D.C

Zeph and Sonia walk side by side, the cool breeze making their coattails snap and twist in the wind.

“I really like these coats,” Zeph says and runs his hand down the front. Sonia cracks a smile and looks at him out of the corner of her eyes.

“I fucking hope you do, they were expensive as hell,” she says and they fall back into their quiet rhythm as her heels click on the sidewalk and Zephs boots click with them. The wide capitol sidewalks are still busy at this late hour, even as most of the monuments at the Mall are closed for the night. The cherry blossoms rustle their branches and Sonia and Zeph weave through the people.

Zeph takes his hand out of his pocket and lets the breeze wrap around his finger. He exhales with the feeling of it, sending tingles up his arm. The winds calm him and despite the irony, they ground his thoughts… and nerves. Sliding his hand back into his pocket he comes back to reality.

“Are you sure she’s going to be there?”

“No, but a lot of Aftergods will be there so let’s hope,” Sonia says.

Zeph nods and speeds up to stay with her.

As they get closer to their destination the sidewalks begin to fill with more and more people. Zeph has to step behind Sonia to stay with her as the crowd thickens even more. He follows her until she slows down and Zeph looks up. The wide steps of the Smithsonian yawn before them as some of the crowd breaks off and begins to ascend the steps.

Zeph steps up next ot her and looks over at his aunts blank face. Her thoughts hidden.

“Once more unto the breach,” Zeph says trying to lighten the mood even though his nerves are spiking again.

“Don’t be so fucking dramatic,” Sonia rolls her eyes and starts to walk up the steps, joining the stream of people around them. Zeph scrambles up after her.

“I’m worried to you know,” Zeph says and Sonia pauses and turns to him.

“I know that it’s just that,” Sonia sighs and tugs at her coat sleeves. “I’m scared that we won’t find her,” Zeph is almost shocked at how candid Sonia is being but he walks up the last two steps between them.

“Like you said all the big Aftergod power players are supposed to be here, so let’s keep some faith,” Zeph says. “We’ll find Aunt Melia.”

Sonia nods, her features hardening once again.

“Kalliope would be stupid not to be here tonight,”

They continue up the steps, more people walking up now. Zeph lowers his voice and leans closer.

“And what if Kalliope isn’t after witches?”

“Then we’ll figure it out, we always do,” Sonia responds. They reach the top of the stairs and are jostled by the flow of people walking in. As they crowd into the threshold Sonia lowers her hand and slides sunglasses on. She wasn’t hurt by the attack two days ago, but she still doesn’t want a repeat. Even more so since they still do not know who ordered the attack. They walk throught he glass doors and Zeph takes in the space.

A stage has been erected in front of the giant taxidermized elephant. Security stands just within the entry turning away rubberneckers and wannabes, those not on the list. As they get closer to the guards. Zeph slides his hand into the pocket of his coat, Sonia does the same with hers.

The guards stop them, and almost in sync Sonia and Zeph extend their ID’s. Both fake of course. According to Zeph he’s a twenty something history prodigy interning at the Archives while Sonia’s is almost true except the name. A twenty six year old world famous archeologist.

They run a pen down the list and check them off then wave them through.

They walk through the assembled crowd. Those let in dressed in fancy gowns and dazzling suits. Everyone hear has some modicum of importance to the field of either history or archelogy. Also, everyone here to listen to the keynote speaker, Ophelia Johnstone.

Genius, humanitarian, Chief Archivist of the National Archives, and an Aftergoddess. The powers of Vulcan now flow through her. She was launched to international prominence when she interviewed about her new found powers and even demonstrated them on MSNBC for the world to see. Thanks to her efforts the world got used to Aftergods a hell of a lot faster than if she hadn’t come forward.

Now, her Aftergoddessness is less a point of controversy then he decision to interview with MSNBC instead of CNN.

Her speech tonight is about the machinations within the four empires, the four pantheons really that led to the entrapment of the gods, instead of just destroying them. Zeph and Sonia are banking on Kalliope showing up tonight due to the fact that Ophelia is an Aftegod icon, her events always have high Aftergod attendance.

More and more people enter the atrium and Zeph and Sonia slide into an alcove over to the side. As they wait for the event to start Zeph leans closer to Sonia.

“Do you see the people who attacked you?” Zeph asks. Sonia shakes her head. Zeph can’t see her eyes behind her glasses,but by the way her face shifts he can tell she is scanning the room. Zeph sighs and leans back agaisnt the wall.

“What the fuck have our lives become?” Zeph says and Sonia laughs and leans back next to him.

“Well, six months ago my fiancé had just left me and you,” she points her finger at me “were failing all your classes,”

Zeph runs his tongue over his teeth and smiles.

“And now you’re a sorceress, Melia’s a witch and I’m an Aftergod with the essence of Aeolus trapped in me.”

Sonia lowers her glasses and looks at me over the rim.

“Don’t act like you don’t love it,”

Zeph furrows his brow in surprise.

“I never said I didn’t! It’s just everything is so fucking crazy now,”

Sonia slides her glasses back up her face and tilts her head at him.

“You’re telling me?”

Zeph smiles and for a second her can believe that Melia only ran off to the bathroom. That they dragged him to one of their archaeological events and he’s pretending t hate it but, but loving every second he gets to spend with his aunts.

But Melia is gone and that’s why they are here. Zeph opens his mouth ti respond but the lights dim and Ophelia takes the stage. He’d recognize her anywhere. Her smile bright and gleaming and her thick curly hair draped across her forehead. Zeph watches as she crosses the stage, places her hands on either side of the podium and leads into the microphone.

“Good evening everyone,: she says with a smile. “My name is Ophelia Johnstone and the least interesting thing about me is that I’m an Aftergoddess. A smattering of laughs rise out of the crowd,but more faces just a smile a forced smile. Being an Aftergod is no longer something newsworthy. How fast people adjust Zeph thinks.

“Tonight, I will be speaking about what lead to the eventual entrapment of the gods within Pandoras box, the political machinations and scheming within the four pantheons, and how they were released into our time.”

Sonia and Zeph both stiffen at the latter topic. This being because it was them who released the Aftergods into their time. 100% not on purpose, but they aren’t chomping at the bit to reveal it was them. Not that Ophelia could know, no one knows. Melia made sure of that.

Zeph stares at the crowd, looking for Kalliope and her cultist witches. Most Aftergods live peaceful lives, teachers, doctors and writer. Shit like that. A smaller portion use their powers for good. Most of the medicinal aftergods volunteer at hospitals, the water gods help purify contaminated water, hell even the ice gods use their powers to repair the poles.

Yet like the clichés they want to be, some let the power go straight to their brain, and then rot through it. Kalliope is one of them.

Ophelia talks on and on about how the ancient civilizations got fed up with the constant quests and tasks. How the myths are true, all of them.

After the had failed to answer Daedalus prayers to save Icarus, Daedalus craved freedom from the yoke of their power. He approached the leaders of each civilization with an idea, what if there was no one above the leader. Well, A king, a queen, an emperor and a pharaoh couldn’t very well say no to increased power, could they?

Modeled after the box Pandora opened, leaving poor Elpis inside, Daedalus claimed that he could trap the gods in the box and crush their free will, leaving only their essence. Once they heard the extent of his plan, the leaders couldn’t pour enough gold into the project until ti was completed. And once it was, all they needed was for someone with ichor in their veins to open the box, a god.

’Back then contacting a god was almost a god was almost as easy as it is now,” Ophelia says

“Daedalus brought the box to King Minos and Minos used his sway as king to contact the gods. He said he had a gift for them.And just like that the gods fell prey to the trap. Dionysus was so curious he almost ripped the lid off to get at the treasure that must have been inside,” Ophelia continues.

A gust of wind blows through the atrium. Its almost imperceptible even to Zeph but it’s there carrying the scent of metal and lots of men. Zeph turns his head and looks throughout the crowd but nothing seems out of the ordinary as they listen with rapt attention to Ophelia describe all the gods getting sucked into the box.

“That’s not all Daedalus built. Before his death Daedalus was working on a project called Theoktonia or in English, Godkiller. He never finished it but we believe it was made out of the same materials and magic as Pandora’s box. Within the past two months the Archibes became aware of this artifact and not only is it real, but we have it here tonight.

Zeph and Sonia look at each other with furrowed brows. They had also come across this Godkiller in their research, but they thought it incomplete and ravaged by time, useless.

Ophelia turns and her hand ignites as she points to her right. In a burst of flame a glass box appears with a metallic rod suspended inside. Ophelia opens her mouth to keep talking but gunfire erupts. The crowd ducks and begins to scream as Ophelia dives to the side to take cover behind the stone podium.

Zeph whips his head around and sees men in rabbit masks shoot into the crowd and at the stage.

“What the fuck is happening?” Zeph asks as Sonia grabs his arm and drags him around the corner behind a column.

“This isn’t what I thought would happen tonight,” Sonia says while reaching into the folds of her trenchcoat pulling out her staff.

Gunfire is still erupting from the doorways, Zeph peeks out and sees the men in masks stepping out of the entrance way and advancing on the stage. Bodies litter the ground, blood spilling everywhere.

The attacker closest to them turns and Zeph is staring into his eyes and then they flare pink and he points his gun at Zeph’s head.

“AH,” Zeph screams and leaps back behind the column. Bullets collide with the wall in front of them and shards of stone and dust fly out. Sonia twirls the staff in her hand and looks at Zeph.

“You’d better cover your face,” she says.

Zeph reaches into the neckline of his coat and pulls up on the black satin so that the lower half of his face is covered.

“We fight towards the exit, we’ll find Kalliope I promise,” Sonia says and squeezes his arm. With that she lets go of him and he tenses his muscles.

“3…2…1” Sonia says. They leap out from behind the column and face the rabbit masked assailants. The closest one is reloading their gun and Zeph charges at them and grabs the gun.

“Hey handsome,” Zeph says and lunges at the man. As he is about to pull the trigger Zeph uses his widns to yank the gun out of his grip and then Zeph punches him in the throat. The man staggers back and swings is right arm wide and Zeph blocks it with his left arm and then grabs him. Zeph spins the man around and with one hand he uses his winds to send the man sailing backwards, and with the other hand he spisn the gun in the air and when the man starts to get up Zeph sends it sailing into his skull. Zeph hears a crunch and sees blood begin to spurt out. Zeph turns away and shakes his arms out, looking for Sonia.

She is fighting two of the men at once. The Eye of Odin flares at the top of her staff and one of the attackers gets yanked back but as Sonia is turning the other stabs her in the shoulder.

“Sonia!” Zeph says and snaps back to reality. With a though his wins unfurl out of him covering ther ground in a crackling ice and the attacker nearest him begins to scream as Zeph freezes his ass. Sonia kicks the man who stabbed her and he stumbles back while she spins around and slams her staff in between the mans eyes. He groans and then slumps over.

Zeph runs over and flicks his wrist to send the second man flying into a column, blood trails down after him as he slides down. Zeph gets to Sonia just in time as she falls back. Zeph keeps her steady but she shrugs him off and stands up, yanking the knife out. Blood bubbles out and Zeph swallows his fear.

“Christ Sonia,” he says. She just waves him off with a shaky hand and grabs her staff. She holds it over the wound and her eyes and the eye on the staff glow in unsion.

“Heal,” She says. The wound closes like a zipper and she rolls her shoulder out like nothing happened.

“Z…” looking at something over his shoulder. Zeph turns. The rest of the attackers are still shooting at the stage, at the glass, like Zeph and Sonia aren’t even there. Ophelia is nowhere to be seen.

“Why aren’t they shooting us?” Sonia asks as she looks at the men through her staff.

Zeph thinks back to how the mans eyes flared bright pink, and who else he knows who can do that.

“Love Aftergod Sonia. One of their eyes flared bright pink, only love Aftergods can do that,”

Sonia nods and takes her shattered glasses off, looking into the upper levels.

“Where are they though, they have to be close to control their enthralled like this,”

Zeph doesn’t say anything.

“We should go out the back. Those goons are blocking the only exit,” Sonia says. They turn to go and walk right into a line of bunny masked men.

“Fuck,” Sonia says and reels back. Zeph watches as more and more of them flood in. Dressed in various bits of combat gear, all armed to the teeth. None of them are focused on the two of them, though, all are focused on the stage.

“Sonia” he starts to say but then all the masked men turn to face the entrance, the gunfire cutting off as the ones closest to the door kneel. Zeph shifts closer to Sonia as a shadow grows closer and closer until a woman stands framed in the entry way.