AresJoxerCupidStrife - Lisa

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24

Okay Here's the official stuff--

Title: Unholy Terrors

Author: Lisa

Rating: we'll say R to be safe, eventually it probably will be

Archive: AJCS, TW's site, anyone else actually wants it--just ask.

Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue. I don't have anything that isn't stained, gotten hit with Crayola graffitti anyway, broken, in some way kid-demolished or all of the above anyway. :-)

Notes--for this Dite and Ares have 6 kids together: Cupid, Anteros (Passion), Deimos, Phobos, Enyo (War and Horror) and Harmonia. Some myth sources put all 6 as Dite and Ares and it works for this. Joxer is Strife's son in this and his mother is from a long line of unremarkable demigoddesses.

Okay I think that covers the official stuff.

Eris stepped out of the huge tub, drying off with a thought. Another thought flashed on her favorite nightgown and applied the ugly green facial mask that Dite gave her. She scowled so much with her work that she didn't want to have premature wrinkles centuries before her time, even if the mask looked hideous. Not that she would let *anyone* see her in the drab flannel nightgown either, but it was warm, soft and perfect for snuggling up in on a cold night to read a good scroll. It wasn't like she had anything else to snuggle up with these days, after all.

She thought up some brightly lit candles as she entered her bedroom and went straight to the shelves of scrolls no one would believe *she* kept. She picked out one of her favorites--a rather unfavored bard who had way too much blood, gore, and violence in his stories for most tastes, as well as copious amounts of smut. Eris just didn't understand why his work was so rejected for the most part.

She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror as she crossed to the bed and screamed in horror.

Strife had been pulling a rash of practical jokes lately in an attempt to cheer Cupid up. Cupid had practically moved into the Halls of War, unable to stand living in the temple he'd shared with Psyche and avoiding his mother's temple because of Anteros. The God of Love wasn't as stupid as most assumed, he'd simply turned a blind eye to his wife's infidelities but when he'd caught Psyche crawling all over his younger brother that had been the final straw. Cupid didn't blame Anteros, who had been attempting to get away from Psyche, but he couldn't stand being around his brother just yet either.

No one had put a stop to Strife's pranks because Cupid was simply so miserable it was getting to *everyone*. Anything that might make the Love God smile was worth putting up with--even Strife's warped humor. And Eris had thought most of the pranks hilarious (only those played on her weren't funny as far as she was concerned)

But enought was enough. Strife had gone *way* too far this time. She didn't have a doubt her son was responsible for this. She concentrated a second, locating her son.

She flashed into Ares sitting room, almost rolling her eyes at her brother and son going over the plans for the war near Corinth for the billionth time. Granted anything that happened near Corinth, involving the city or not, needed extra attention because whiny ass Jerkules was almost sure to show up and screw it up. But even the chance to needle her twin about his paranoia over this war was not enough to distract her from her fury

"HOW COULD YOU!!" Eris screamed at her son.

Strife glanced up from the scrolls on the low table three comfy chairs were arranged around. In the next second he was sliding out of his chair to the floor gasping with laughter.

Ares burst out in loud guffaws staring at his sister. Cupid took a moment longer but was soon on the floor laughing with Strife at his Aunt's expense.

"Wh--What--did--he--do?" Ares managed, truly unsure what Strife was to blame for about his sister's very uncharecteristic appearance.

"Love the dress, ma" Strife nearly wailed, laughing so hard tears were streaming down his cheeks.

"Gotta--blame my mom--for the green gook" Cupid gasped through his laughter defending Strife. "Strife--wouldn't've done that"

"YOU FREAKING MORONS! MY HAIR IS PINK!!!" Discord screeched "FIX IT NOW, STRIFE!!!!"

"I--I ca--can't" Strife gasped nearly hyperventilating he was laughing so hard. He tried to tell her that he couldn't fix it, because whatever had caused her new hair color wasn't his Mischief. It was damned good, but not his doing. He was having too hard of a time trying to catch his breath to get the words out.

Discord screamed wordlessly, throwing an energy ball at her son (a relatively mild one though--she didn't want to do any serious damage until her hair was back to normal)

"LAUGH!!! OH FINE JUST LAUGH!!! BUNCH OF DAMNED OVERGROWN CHILDREN IS WHAT YOU ARE!!! ALL THREE OF YOU NEED BROUGHT DOWN TO SIZE!!!!" She obviously wasn't going to get anything out of Strife until he'd gotten over his amusement. Discord flashed out, she had some very *serioius* revenge to plot.

"Uh-uh-UNK!" Strife gasped, still struggling for breath but his amusement evaporating turning to panic as he noticed his uncle shrinking.

"Gods, Strife" Cupid cried out in horror noticing his cousin, confused by how childish his voice sounded, then glanced at his father.

"Oh shit, DISCOR--"Ares tried shouting not even completing his sister's title before he lost the ability to speak.

~~~~~~~~

"Dammit, Dei! Where did you hide that shampoo?" Phobos shouted at his twin. He had a panicky premonition something was wrong, and was fed up with trying to reason his twin into checking on it. He'd progressed to strangling the hiding place out of Deimos.

Deimos tried answering but it was immpossible with his twin's hands around his throat. Eyes bulging and head-swimming, Deimos struggled to focus. He just barely managed to conjure up the potion from it's hiding place---the very back of the cupboard of shampoos, creams and whatever in Tartarus was in the rest of the bottles their mother gave their Aunt. The vast majority untouched because Eris didn't have the patience to mess with all that.

"Oh shit," Deimos gaped, his smug look disappearing. The cap on the bottle in his hand was open and it had obviously been used.

"Where was it?!" Phobos screamed.

"In the very back of Aunty E's gunk cupboard. The ver, very,very back--behind stuff with a century's worth of dust!" Deimos shouted back, beginning to panic as well.

"Aunty E!?" Phobos squealed.

"What're we gonna do?"

"ENYO!!!!" Phobos shouted at the top of his lungs. His little sister thought clearly and they needed someone with a clear head at the moment.

Deimos looked at his panicking twin in horror. "Why'd ya holler at her?" Enyo was gonna blast him all over the room. Their baby sister got the worst of both their parents' tempers.

The young Goddess of War and Horror flashed in. Her eyes widening at the bottle Deimos held. "ANTEROS!!!!"

The black-haired, scarlet winged God of Passion flashed in a second later. Noticing what Deimos held, he began shouting "WHO?!? HOW?!? YOU SAID YOU HAD AN ABSOLUTELY SAFE PLACE, DEIMOS!"

"He put it in Aunt E's shampoo and bubble bath and shit cupboard," Phobos said in a panicked rush. Ter pissed was almost as scary as their dad or Cupe. Ter and En pissed, well that was a very painful combination for whoever their anger was directed at.

Enyo hauled off and began punching Deimos. "You gods damned IDIOT!!" She was very much her father's daughter.

"HARMONIA!!" Anteros shouted. True, his youngest sister was barely 15, but she *was* the Goddess of Harmony and Concord. Hopefully, she could use a little of her power to nudge Enyo into not killing Deimos--at least not until after they got this figured out.

"What in Tartarus! Ter, if mom catches me out of bed, we're all up to our eyeballs in shit!" Harmonia hissed at her older brother. They'd agreed they weren't meeting that night. Harmonia was already in big trouble for being out of her bed in the middle of the night two nights earlier. After finishing something or other for Apollo's chariot, Daddy Heph had gotten home late and, as was his centuries old habit of checking in on the children before he went to bed, he peeked in on Bliss (who'd pretty much been living in his grandmother's temple since his parents' break up). When he went to check on Harmonia, however, she hadn't been in bed. (She'd been with the others working on the potion) She'd been greeted by a very furious Dite and Heph sitting on her bed waiting for her when she'd snuck back into her room.

Enyo stopped pounding on Deimos long enough to fill in Harmonia on what was wrong.

"MORON!!" Harmonia screeched, hauling off and punching her brother a couple times as well. Anteros gaped at his baby sister. He really shouldn't be so shocked. She was every bit as much War's daughter as Enyo and belonging to the House of Love hadn't tamed Anteros' or Cupid's tempers, why would it hers?

"The potion, which we aren't even sure is gonna work in the first place, is meant for a LOVE *GOD*!! What in Tartarus is it going to do to a WAR *GODDESS*." Harmonia yelped. The five of them had been trying to come up with something--*anything*--to help Cupid out of the depression he'd been in the past 3 months. However, when they had tested it, the potion had literally evaporated every one of the shed feathers of Cupid's they'd found and so they hadn't dared actually try it on their brother yet.

"We could pour some on En's head and find out," Phobos suggested unthinkingly.

Enyo went after Phobos with a furious scream and a kick that knocked his feet out from under him.

"En!" Anteros grabbed his sister, "That's enough for now. I think we should probably go find mom."

"NOT!" Harmonia shouted.

"You'd rather tell dad?" Anteros glared in disbelief. They were in deep shit. Their mother was far more likely to be reasonable. "We've got to talk to one of 'em! There's no telling what this could do to Aunt E!"

"Yeah, well, I am soo not going to be the one interrupting mom and Daddy Heph tonight. It's their anniversary, doofus!" Harmonia shot back.

The five looked at each other. There was no choice, they absolutely couldn't sit back and hope for the best---their father it was. They flashed into his sitting room where he could usually be found this time of night.

Deimos and Phobos gaped in disbelief. Anteros sat down heavily on the floor. Enyo and Harmonia looked at each other and then back at the sight that greeted them in their father's sitting room. "Oh shit" the sisters whispered in near unison.

On the floor were two very distressed and whimpering infants. One seemed only a few days old with wisps of curling golden hair and white wings. The other looked only a few hours old, was smaller, fragile-seeming with huge panicked eyes and what little hair he had was dark and standing on end.

There was a third infant. This one seemed slightly bigger--older, a few weeks old instead of a few days or hours. Thick black hair topped the head of the oldest looking infant. He was on Ares' favorite chair, feet kicking, fists flailing and screaming furiously.

This was *sooo* not good, Harmonia thought.



~~~~~~~~~~

Enyo and Harmonia went to the babies.

"It's okay, daddy, we'll fix this---somehow." Enyo said, picking up Baby Ares and thinking a diaper and warm pajamas on her father. Glancing down at her brother and cousin on the floor where Harmonia was trying to calm them, she thought diapers and pajamas as well.

Harmonia quickly thought up three cradles. Baby Ares became even more enraged when Enyo put him down in one. Baby Strife let up a monstrous wail when he was taken away from Baby Cupid's side.

"Fine!" Enyo muttered, thinking up an extra-large crib. Harmonia laid Cupid in the crib and Enyo put Strife down next to him. Then gathering up her father, she laid him in the crib as well. Baby Cupid and Baby Strife managed to snuggle up tightly together in the moment her back was turned (evidently they had some of thier power because neither baby was big enough to really move around that much.) Baby Ares seemed content once the other two were back where he could see them.

"You still know what's what, don't ya, daddy?" Enyo murmured to the tiny War god and got a babyish version of Ares' "what kind of idiot did I father?" glare, usually reserved for Deimos' and Phobos' stupider stunts.

Deimos and Phobos were still in shock and frozen like statues. The sisters ignored them. The twins were never good in a crisis. Anteros was still on the floor with his head on his drawn up knees, groaning "What are we gonna do?"

Harmonia began pacing while Enyo studied the plans on the table for the war near Corinth. "First things first." Enyo said, looking up from the maps, "We've gotta cover their jobs. Ter, you'll have to pull double duty and take Cupe's workload as well. Dei, Pho, you two are going to have to cover for Aunty E and Strife--"

Anteros looked up, "What makes you think we're going to need to cover for Aunty E?"

Harmonia gave him a "duh" glare worthy of their father.

Enyo ignored him entirely and continued speaking, "Harm, you and I are gonna cover for dad."

Baby Ares managed to roll over and scoot himself so that he was glaring at his daughters through the crib's bars. He growled angrily to get his daughters' attention.

"What? C'mon, daddy, we don't have much choice here." Enyo said gently.

Baby Ares glared and growled more.

"This war is by Corinth, daddy. No way Dei and Pho can handle it." Enyo pointed out, getting no protest from her twin brothers.

Baby Ares snarled.

"I know, we'll have Ter run the war and Harm and I can cover for Cupid and Anteros. We'll have lots of fun starting orgies." Enyo said sarcastically. The war had a deadline edict stamped with Zeus' seal. No postponement was possible. The Houses of Aggression would be in serious shit--well, more than they already were at the moment--if the war was late or got flubbed.

Ares managed to form an itty bitty fireball and fling it at his older daughter, missing her, though not by much--and that only because she was just out of his greatly reduced range. At 110, Enyo was still to young to be allowed off Olympus without an escort for another 40 years and Harmonia was little more than a baby by Olympian standards.

Baby Cupid and Baby Strife had moved around, their tiny faces pushed up against the crib's bars as well, both looking nearly as furious about her flippant suggestion as Ares.

"No way in Tartarus!" Anteros growled. "You two run the war." His father was going to blast them all when he got back to normal. He figured punishment for allowing his underage sisters to run one war was going to be less than having them oversee a few dozen orgies. Besides, Enyo *was* War and Horror after all and had been studying and training for nearly 90 years to fully take up her future position and had been helping with smaller feuds for the last 20 years. She really was the best choice to run the war.

"We gotta get rid of Athena." Harmonia decided, chewing her bottom lip as she paced. "And we need a babysitter. We've got to keep this quiet."

"Get rid of Athena?" Deimos gaped, coming a little out of his stupor. "Harm, ya belong to *Love*, isn't murder like *way* outta yer league?"

"Quiet! HOw dou you expect to keep this quiet?!" Anteros shouted, ignoring Deimos. "Dad's going to kill us all when he gets back to normal!"

The glare that baby Ares leveled at them all through the bars of the crib seemed to confirm that. He didn't know exactly how or why yet, but he'd deduced that his five younger children by Dite were somehow behind this mess.

"I don't mean kill her,you idiot." Harmonia snorted. "And think, guys! The God of War in *diapers*!!! Think grandpa won't try to move Uncle Jerk in here? Think old Iron Pants won't try to muscle her way in charge of War? Especially with Aunt E and Strife out of commission too?"

"It's not like Dad not being seen is unusual," Enyo continued, "it's not like he sociallizes. Most of the Pantheon would go decades without seeing Dad if it weren't for Grandpa's annual assembly to listen to himself talk."

"So how do we get rid of 'Thena with out killin' her?" Phobos asked, then muttered under his breath "Killin' her would be so much easier."

Harmonia paced while Enyo looked at a map mixed in with the war plans. "Here," Enyo pointed, "the commune she has three days from Athens."

Harmonia came over catching her sister's line of thought, nodding with a smile.

"But Ter can't do it," Harmonia said, frowning. "That would have her focused on us faster than we could blink."

"What are you talking about?" Anteros growled, putting words to the growls Baby Ares was emitting from the crib. The two girls ignored them and continued to frown at the map.

"Apollo!" Harmonia said with a flash of inspiration. She looked at her sister and elaborated, "He's been after you for decades. Flash a little cleavage and bat your eyes and he'll pour some aphrodisiac into the well at 'Thena's virgin commune, no questions asked. It'll blow her mind--her favorite virgin philosophers and artists prowlin' around like cats in heat. And you know Apollo is dumb enough to stick around to enjoy his handiwork. If someone could tip off Grandpa as well--"

" 'Thena will do that herself by going whining to him first thing." Enyo interrupted grinning, "Grandpa and Uncle Apollo will be so busy with the virgins that Grandpa won't pay any attention to the war or what's going on here--or to 'Thena's bitchin'. We should probably stir up some trouble in Athens as well. Aunt Lyssa is still pissed at Athena for the hoodoo at the Solstice gathering"

Harmonia nodded with a rather evil grin. Even though she resided in Asphodel, the ancient Goddess of Madness was a fringe member of the Houses of Aggression and would happily sew the seeds of insanity in a few of Athena's top ranking generals.

Baby Ares was screaming furiously at his daughters plots, while Deimos and Phobos were ineffectively trying to shush all three angry babies. Anteros had finally absorbed enough of his sister's words to shout, "APOLLO WHAT?!?!"

Enyo rolled her eyes. "Athena will take care of that problem," she grinned. "Once she's done with him, he'll be lucky to have his balls attached and he won't likely come near me again for decades since I'll be the one he blames--the moron."

Ares stopped screaming but was still glaring at his daughters as they began implementing their plans while Anteros was just trying to keep up with his sisters. Phobos was sent to Asphodel to speak with Lyssa and he returned saying the Goddess of Madness had already started putting her own similar plans in motion on no less than nine Athenian generals, but was more than willing to speed up the process to suit them. Anteros was sent off to mix up a strong passion potion which Enyo would give to Apollo after convincing him to participate in their scheme in the morning.

The two sisters continued to study the war plans, frowning. Changing a few things here, adding a few things there. Getting glares and growls from the crib which grew weaker as the hours passed. Only stubbornness was keeping Baby Ares awake, determined to know what his daughters plotted.

~~~~~~~~~



~~~~~~~~

Hephaestus leaned down to give his wife one last kiss.

"Mmm..." Dite pouted sleepily. "Do ya really gotta go?"

Hephaestus chuckled. "I've got a backlog of orders, sweetheart, but I'll try to get home early tonight.

Dite snuggled deeper into the covers groggily. "You better," she grumbled.

Heph walked through the Temple of Love's living apartments, peeking into Bliss' room. He smiled at the sight of his grandson curled up with his teddy bear. Poor tot had had such a rough go of it the last few months. He crossed the hall to peek in on Harmonia, the only of Dite's children still at her temple, Enyo having moved to the Halls of War when she began her training decades before. Hephaestus was truly worried about Harmonia's behavior lately.

The smile left Heph's face as he opened Harmonia's door and looked in. "APHRODITE!!!"

A groggy, sleep-mussed Dite in a barely fastened bathrobe appeared at his side. "Huh? Wha's wrong?"

Heph pointed at Harmonia's bed which most definitely hadn't been slept in.

Dite woke up quickly then, after scanning Olympus for her daughter's presence, she grabbed her husband's hand, flashed them into Bliss' room long enough to pick up the sleeping godling and then flashed all three of them to Ares' sitting room.

****

Anteros was still throwing a fit as Enyo returned from enlisting Apollo's aid.

"Well, it's done, so shut up already" Enyo snapped. "We gotta figure out where Aunty E is. And you gotta find out what's on Cupe's schedule. It's still to early to wake up Daddy Heph and Mo-"

"Good morning, Mom, Daddy Heph." Harmonia cut off her sister catching sight of their mother and stepfather first.

"Oh shit" Deimos mumbled, trying to slip back towards the door at the furious look on his mother's face.

"Somebody start talking--NOW" Dite growled at her children.

Phobos began yelping it was Deimos' fault and Deimos automatically began trying to drown out his twins words complaining Pho had nearly strangled him to death, while Anteros launched into a tirade about castration and Apollo. Then as three startled wails went up from the crib, Harmonia tore into her shouting brothers for "waking daddy" while Enyo was arguing with Anteros that she could look out for herself just fine thank you.

Dite handed Bliss (who had amazingly managed to stay asleep during the commotion) to Heph and stuck two fingers in her mouth to whistle shrilly. "Shut up, everyone...ARRY!!" Dite gaped at the baby her older daughter was now holding. Thinking up a chair for herself as she fell back in shock. A second later she managed to think one up for Heph who was swaying a bit on his feet as well.

"Enyo--start explaining" Dite ordered.

Anteros opened his mouth but was silenced with a glare from Heph before he could make so much as a squeak.

~~~~~~

~~~~~~

An hour later Dite was shaking her head at her children's actions. "When you guys screw up, you go all out," Dite muttered.

She couldn't begin to fathom how on Olympus they thought they could manage an antidepressant potion to help Cupie. Their hearts were in the right place--but gods, what in Tartarus were they thinking!!

Deimos and Phobos (thank every god and goddess ever, anywhere) had never shown any inclination to mess with potions before. Enyo was still a novice at potions and was a War Goddess besides. Anteros was good with Passion Potions, as it was part of his godly nature, but an antidepressant? That was a far cry from potions for Obsessive Love, Blind Hatred, and nymphomania-inducing aphrodisiacs! There was no subtlety at all to Anteros' potions, no delicacy that an antidepressant would require. Harmonia was the only one who had a godhood even remotely (*very remotely* at that) suited to making such a potion and Harm wouldn't begin to study potions for another fifty-five years!

Pain, Panic, Passion and War and Horror combining their talents and powers--*that* was going to come up with an antidepressant potion for a Love God? NOT!

Gods! Apollo and Asclepius rarely even thought of messing with potions like that (and never one that would effect a god) and that was their field of expertise!

Hephaestus was mentally going over his own private stash of weapons and chains plotting a suitable torture for Apollo when Enyo finished explaining everything that had happened and how they planned to cover for and correct the problems. He would wait on his private plans for Apollo though, until Ares was able to help him enjoy taking their eldest brother apart, peice by peice, for daring to even look at Enyo.

"I am *sooo* not bailing your butts out. Your father and Cupe can deal with you when they get back to normal." Dite glared. "This was so way beyond stupid! I'll take care of Zeus, tell him that Ares thought this up on purpose to test you kids. He'll be distracted enough by Athena's virgins to buy that if he bothers to notice. Other than that you're on your own."

"What about a sitter? Xena maybe? Be best to get Daddy, Cupe and Strife away from Olympus for a while but who is there that can be trusted?" Enyo asked.

Dite frowned, she supposed it wouldn't be going back on her word of not helping them if she offered them a little suggestion. Enyo and Harmonia had such limited experience with mortals. Anteros was all god and paid little attention to what wasn't involved directly in his work when it came to mortals. Deimos and Phobos--well, she loved them dearly, but they were Deimos and Phobos.

"Joxer" Dite decided. "Joxie is devoted to Ares and is Strife's son and he's just a big ole sweetie"

Heph nodded his agreement to the suggestion of Joxer, thinking up a strange looking push cart big enough for three or four toddlers about Bliss' size to sprawl out in and ordered the kids to outfit it so Joxer could properly take care of the three infants.

Dite took Ares from Enyo's arms, Deimos and Phobos were given Cupid and Strife to feed, leaving the girls and Anteros to outfit the pushcart.

"I'm going to take Bliss home, see if I can get Clio or Mel to watch him and go look for Eris." Heph murmured to his wife, then leaned further down, "Don't worry, Arry, when you get back to normal we'll get that sorry bastard. No one is going to mess with one of our girls." Heph whispered.

"Hey, hon, you guys better not go leaving Rissy and me out of the fun. I have a few points I'd like to get across to sunshine boy myself" Dite muttered darkly. It was a well kept secret that the Houses of Aggression actually got along very well. Aphrodite and Eris were very close. The supposed hatred between Ares and Heph over the children was one of the most laughable farces ever perpetuated on Olympus (which was saying a lot). It was a lot safer for everyone, though, if Zeus thought they hated each other.

"Of course not" Heph smiled, then flashed out. Dite settled down to thoroughly look over the plans the kids had made, feeding Ares a skin of ambrosia-laced milk while she did so.

"They're good, bro." Dite said quietly. Ares squirmed in her lap unhappily. Dite, sensing Ares' worry, tried to reassure him though she was near to panic herself wondering if this situation was even reversible. "C'mon you were barely Harmie's age when you took up War. We were left to sink or swimon our own, we made it. They're our kids, and they're a lot better trained and prepared for this than we were."

The pained look on Baby Ares' face at that reminder made Dite cuddle him tightly. The four of them--Ares, Eris, Heph and Dite--had been forced into their positions as little more than children, untrained and (Zeus had done his best to ensure) unaided, with severe punishments for the least failure to do their jobs correctly (even if that failure was only imagined by Zeus). Zeus had singled out the four of them, especially Ares and Eris, to torment and brutalize as children, as a result Ares was unreasonably overprotective of his children. Even Cupid, at 900 and a father himself, was still subject to his father keeping close tabs on him, checking up constantly.

Dite, Heph, and Eris were all feircely protective of all the children as well, like Ares vowing centuries before they had children that *no one* would ever hurt their kids. Ares, however, carried it to the extreme he'd keep them all safely enshrined in his temple if he could.

"Shh, they'll pull this off, it's not the same" Dite murmured.

Ares held himself rigid a moment, but then allowed himself to be cuddled.

"They did mean well, Arry" Dite whispered. "They were just trying to help Cupie, so don't be too hard on them when you get back to normal."

Ares made a few cranky grumbles in response to that and snuggled more comfortably in Dite's arms to wait to be taken to his babysitter--JOXER!!! What was Dite thinking? Joxer could hardly walk without falling on his face. True, Joxer was a secret favorite of Ares, but all the same, if the klutz dropped any of them he was going to be in serious pain when they got back to normal.

~~~~~



~~~~~~

"Joxer!"

The startled would-be warrior stumbled, falling in a clanking of the mismatched pieces he called armor. When he managed to get back to his feet, what looked to be a scarlet-winged, teenaged version of Ares and a black haired young Aphrodite were standing in front of him. Having traveled with Xena and Hercules, Joxer'd seen more gods face to face than the average Greek (not counting his father and granmother, of course) But he wasn't completely sure who he was looking at now.

"Uh, what did I do?"

"Nothing yet, Joxie, mom thought you'd be perfect for a special job though"

"Aphrodite?" he ventured cautiously.

"Yeah, oh, I'm Enyo, he's Anteros" the girl said.

"We need you to babysit Dad, Cupe and Strife" the youth added.

"Babysit?" Joxer frowned, confused. Glancing about, he could sense Strife's presence but something wasn't quite right about it and he didn't see his dad anywhere. Even when Strife was masking his presence, Joxer was always able to see him.

Enyo pointed at a strange looking cart behind them.

Joxer cautiously moved towards it and looked inside. Babies.

The largest baby glared up at him. Even on the soft baby features, Joxer recgognized the glare instantly. Ares. "Oh, Gods," he whispered. Then looking over at the winged blonde baby and the third infant, Joxer breathed, "Dad?"

"How did this happen?" he asked, but when he turned back, Enyo and Anteros were gone.

"I don't suppose you three can tell me what happened?" he sighed, getting a snort from the infant God of War and a squirm that almost looked like a shrug from Baby Strife.

"I sure hope things don't get as bad as they did when you lost your sword, Ares." Joxer sighed. Baby Ares eyes widened, startled by the thought.

Joxer noticed the scroll lying next to Ares, he picked it up. "Well, at least they left an instruction scroll to this cart." he muttered.

*****

A manic giggle rang through the room, waking Jace. He sat up looking around. And sensed---his grandmother?? Something was seriously wrong with her presence. "Is that you, Gran?" he whispered, trying not to wake his lover.

Jace blinked when his grandmother showed herself. "Gran?"

Her hair was pink--not the frothy soft pink Dite favored for just about everything, but a glaring, painful to look at pink. Jace wouldn't have been surprised to find out that his grandmother's hair glowed in the dark. And the flimsy dress she wore looked more Aprhodite's style and was three shades more obnoxious than the pink of her hair.

Eris giggled,again. "Up, up, up, precious. We've got decorating to do."

"Huh?"

That insane, manic giggle sounded again sending shivers down Jace's spine. What in Tartarus was going on? Giggling and insanely perky? Not his grandma.

"Jace." A groggy voice came from under the covers, eliciting another giggle from Eris who promptly flashed away the blankets.

"Oh, punkin, you have got good taste." Eris leered at the naked King of Corinth with a giggle, "Is he as hot as he looks?"

Iphicles bolted upright, covering himself with the pillow. "Who are you and what are you doing here?!" he demanded.

Eris giggled.

"Iph, honey, just calm down, okay? You don't want to upset Lady Eris, she doesn't quite seem herself today." Jace swallowed, the words slow and careful, his eyes never leaving his grandmother.

His Gran always was a bit psychotic, so were his dad and Jett for that matter, but as far as Jace could see she'd well and truly lost her mind. An insane goddess was not someone to cross.

"C'mon, sugar, we got redecorating and shopping to do!" Eris giggled and, grabbing her grandson, flashed out.

*****

"Jett!" Joxer called out, nearly wilting in relief at his brother's approach. "Hey, Auto! I could really use some help. They're all wet and hungry."

Jett blinked. "DAD?!?!"

"You take dad, Auto you can take Cupe. I'll get Ares"

"Hey, wait just a minute, I don't do diapers." Autolycus held up his hands, backing away.

Jett glared at Auto as he reached to carefully lift Strife out of the cart. Joxer had his hands full with a very unhappy Ares. SIghing, Auto went to the cart and picked up the infant God of Love.

"THERE THEY ARE!"

Joxer's head snapped up, recognizing the voice. Baby Ares let out a yowl of rage, knowing all too well the annoying owner of the voice.

"Hi Gabby, Xena." Joxer called, sending Jett a questioning look.

"Auto got into some trouble in Athens" Jett shrugged.

~~~~~



~~~~~~~~

"Gabrielle," Xena grabbed her friend's shoulder, holding the Amazon Bard back from going after the King of Thieves, unmindful of the baby--the *BABY??* Where on earth did the baby--no babies--come from?

"Whose babies?" Xena asked, eyebrows raised.

"Joxer's." Auto answered shifting a squirmy Cupid. The blanket around the baby Love God seemed to be bothering his wings but the sping morning was very chilly and it was too cool to leave the infant uncovered. "Easy there, fella, I'm trying to be careful." Auto griped as Cupid began fussing. He was doing the best he could. It wasn't like he had any experience with babies to begin with, and then add wings to try not to smoosh as well.

"Joxer!" Gabrielle screeched outraged. Auto was obviously lying. Joxer with babies?

"Joxer?" Xena asked uncertainly.

"They're relatives. I'm watching them for a while" Joxer said looking at Gabrielle warily. The bard seemed to be in one of her worst unreasonable moods. He *really* didn't want her upsettingt he babies, but didn't see anyway of avoiding it either.

Ares growled, seriously annoyed by this turn of events.

"What kind of *freak* baby is that?! It's growling!" Gabrielle wrinkled her nose in disgust.

{Jett, what did Auto do in Athens?} Joxer asked his brother silently. Sensing Gabrielle's hostility directed at the the thief. He wanted to have an idea of how badly to expect Gabby to behave.

{Stole one of the harpy's scrolls and read it in a tavern. She was there.} Jett laughed at the memory and then defended his lover. { It's not like he took off with it--who'd want to keep on of her scrolls? She was totally humiliated, everyone there hated it.}

Joxer winced.

In Jett's arms, Baby Strife began to giggle picking up his sons' silent conversation. In Joxer's arms Baby Ares was frowning up at his sitter, sensing *something* but unsure what exactly.

"Be nice" Joxer sighed, scolding his father and Jett gently. Ares curious glare up at Joxer intensified. He was definitely missing something.

{JOX!!! JETT!!! DAD!!! HELP GRAN'S FLIPPED!!!}

"Jace!" Joxer and Jett were both startled into speaking aloud by their brother's cries. Baby Strife whimpered in distress.

{What's wrong with Gran?} Joxer asked. Their connection to Jace was strained as if Jace was far beyond the borders of Greece or else something was interfering witht he bond the triplets shared.

"JACEY, ANSWER DAMN YOU!!!!" Jett bellowed outloud when his brother didn't immediately reply.

Gabrielle took a step back. "He's lost his mind!"

"Jett?" Auto whispered curiously. Auto was one of the few who knew the triplets were demigods. Even though Jett, Jace and Joxer were themselves mortal, they were almost completely of godly blood and would have to go back almost 12 generations to find a fully mortal woman in their maternal line. So while he'd never been told the trio had nay special abilities, (nor had he asked), Jett's "hunches" often made Auto suspicious. That the triplets had some sort of unusual bond amongst themselves seemed obvious at least to Auto.

"Jace is in trouble, and something's wrong with Gran." Jett explained tightly.

Baby Ares let up a howl of helpless rage. Baby Strife began crying which had Baby Cupid struggling in Auto's arms reaching for Strife.

"Shh, Arry, shh." Joxer cuddled the baby he held close, "Jace will tell us what's going on when he can, Arry. Shh.... I know you're worried about her."

Nearby, Jett was busy trying to calm Strife. "Hey, c'mon, Dad, easy on the waterworks." Jett murmured, cuddling the baby he held, then he glanced up at Auto who was struggling with an increasingly irate Cupid. "He wants Cupie."

Auto moved closer until he was standing facing Jett, letting the babies hold one another.

"Gran and Jacey will be okay, Dad." Jett tried to comfort the baby, trying to block his own doubts from his father.

Xena gaped.

"DAD!!!" Gabrielle squawked.

A small fireball shot in the bard's direction. Being to far out of range, though, the fireball fell harmlessly several feet short of the bard.

Xena's eyebrows disappeared under her hair in confused shock. "Uh, Joxer.....that baby is a god"

"Mmm...well, yeah." Joxer sighed then looked down at the infant he held. "You know, that wasn't very nice. Or smart. You'll draw attention to yourself, Dad and Cupie doing stuff like that. Its not going to be safe if anyone finds out who you three are and I don't want anything happening to any of you. I don't know if I can protect you if you do something like that in front of the wrong people. You know I'll try, but I'm just one person." Joxer scolded gently.

The baby grumbled petulantly.

Joxer cuddled the baby tightly, "I know... I know this is hard, but whatever's going on we'll sort it out. I just wish Enyo and Anteros had stuck around to tell me what happened exactly."

"Joxer!" Gabrielle shouted horrified, "You're acting like that little freak thing can actually understand you!"

"Wait" Joxer siged as Baby Ares raised his hand again. He walked over closer to Xena and Gabrielle, adjusting the little God of War so he was held upright facing them. "Just one, okay? Please? Get it out of your system and settle down." Gabrielle did sort of deserve this, Joxer rationalized, and Ares couldn't do too much damage as little as he was now. Better to let him get Gabby now, rather than later when he was back to normal.

Jett and AUto turned and held up the babies in their arms so they could have a clear view of what would happen. Both having caught on, baby or not, the trio of miniatureized gods knew what was going on about them.

Baby Ares little fireball hit Gabrielle squarely in the nose garnering a yowl of shocked pain from the bard.

Baby Cupid crowed happily. Baby Strife giggled.

Seeing the baby Joxer held in his arms clearly for the first time, Xena recognized him instantly. "Ares?" she gasped. Then glanced at the other two. One of the blonde baby's wings had worked out of the blanket around him. "Cupid? Strife? How did this happen?"

"I don't know" Joxer said, "Two of Ares kids brought them down, saying Aphrodite volunteered me for babysitting and flashed off. That's all I know"

Xena made another connection. "Strife's your father?"

Joxer nodded, bracing himself for Gabrielle's reaction.

"WHAT?!!" Gabrielle roared. "YOU LIAR!!! STRIFE'S YOUR FATHER!!! HOW COULD YOU DECEIVE US LIKE THAT!!"

"Gabrielle!" Xena snapped. Family trees didn't matter at the moment, there were much bigger problems at hand.

Baby Ares sent another tiny fireball in Gabby's direction.

"Arry, that's enough, please. It's not gonna help," Joxer sighed shifting Ares so that the tiny War god was cuddled tightly in Joxer's arms, his little hands trapped between them.

"Is there anyone that would come if you guys called?" Xena frowned. The only God that would respond to her call was Ares.

{Dite?} Jett asked. {Or Hermes would come if Auto gave a yell}

{Don't know Hermes would have any more clue than we do. Dite, maybe, but not now. Tonight,after Xena and Gabby are asleep I'll try then.} Joxer answered.

{Jox...I don't know about waiting. Especially with Jace and Gran...}

{I don't know either, but I'm getting the feeling that Ares, Dad and Cupe don't want these two knowing any more than necessary.}

Jett reluctantly nodded his agreement.

"We are going to have us a talk later." Auto whispered in Jett's ear, now absolutelty certain that the triplets has some sort of connection that at least enabled them to--well, *think* to one another.

The King of Assassins gave Autolycus a hard, cold glare. A look that was enough to send most running.

Auto snorted, unimpressed. "That doesn't work on me, and you know it."

Baby Strife giggled. And Auto could have sworn that baby Cupid had a satisfied smirk on his face.

"Hercules!" Xena said loudly, struck by sudden inspiration. Her mind preoccupied by the problem at hand, she hadn't noticed any of the exchanges taking place between the men and babies, or even Gabrielles continued ranting (which was getting progressively more shrill and vicious since no one was even looking at her let alone listening).

"What?" Joxer stared confused.

"Hercules!" Xena said triumphantly, getting doubtful, wary looks from Joxer, Jett and Auto as well as some very grouchy noises from the three babies, "Hercules can get Zeus and we can get this sorted out. He and Iolaus should be near Corinth according to what they said their plans were when we saw them about a month ago."

{Jace still seeing Mr. Nameless in Corinth?} Jett asked his brother.

{The last I knew} Joxer nodded.

Jett had been (and still was) extremely annoyed that Jace hadn't given the name of his new lover the last time the three had been together. Joxer figured Jace was very serious about this one--since normally he blabbed *every* detail whether his brothers wanted to hear it or not. Joxer thought Jace's shyness about this latest relationship actually kind of sweet, but at the moment it was another problem. Jace's mystery man might be able to shed some light on what happened to Jace--but they had no idea how to find him.



It took over an hour to get moving towards Corinth.

Gabrielle ranting the entire time. Furious with Joxer for lying to them about who his father was. He had to be evil. The gods were evil and so were their bastards. Except Hercules of course

Xena raised an eyebrow. “Oh really, I’m Ares daughter. I must be evil then, huh?”

“That’s a lie. You’ve been tricked into believing that”

Xena, with visions of the time Ares lost his sword dancing through her head was in a hurry to get things back to the way they should be, and losing all patience with the griping Gabrielle, and the uncooperative Argo who was not wanting anything to do with being hitched to the cart.

{I’m outta here. I’m gonna skin that harpy if I have to listen to her any longer. Then we’ll have real problems with Xena. We’ll be close, just outta earshot and we’re gonna try to get Hermes to find out what in Tartarus is going on from Dite.} Jett said silently grabbing Auto’s arm and taking off at a run. Dragging the surprised and stumbling King of Thieves behind him only a split second before 3 infants started wailing with hunger.

Joxer wanted to sit down and cry. Or brain Gabby with a rock. Waves of anger and disgust rolling off Gabby were unsettling his stomach and the panic from Argo was giving him a headache.

Joxer grabbed milk skins. “Can you hang on, just a little bit Arry?” Joxer asked. Cringing at the look that crossed Ares face. That just didn’t seem right. Why would the god of War, even as a baby be so so--lost looking? It wasn’t hunger. Joxer strained, pushing the limit of the usually suppressed and very unwanted talent. None of it really made any sense. Self loathing. Misery. What in Tartarus? Because he was asked to wait for his bottle? Cupid and Strife were smaller. Younger. Ares was father to one and raised the other. Granted he was an infant now but that kernel of consciousness that Joxer sensed …..

Fed and burped in short order, the exhausted infant gods of Love and Mischief snuggled together and were asleep almost before Joxer got them tucked in.

Joxer looked through the supplies in the cart, the dejection from the tiny war god breaking his heart. He assumed it was because he was stuck as an infant and helpless in the whole debacle. Joxer found what he was looking for a length of sturdy cloth knotted together at the ends to make a sling like carrier. Joxer sensed the kernel of awareness getting more detached in all three of the gods. Not leaving them, exactly, but the trio were becoming more infant like,

Joxer picked up Ares, fed him then snuggled the tiny war god into the hammock style pouch of the carrier. Ares fussed a little in protest.

“Shh Dad and Cupid are just fine we’ll walk right along side here” Joxer soothed him. Then sighed as Argo tried to bolt again. The well trained horse frightened by the overwhelming *feel* of power radiating off the cart. Animals could sense god *made* things. Or gods for that matter. The heavy handed *making* of most of the things in the cart and the well, Joxer guessed curses, er, maybe blessings on the cart were pretty strong--no subtlety. It was simply overwhelming and scaring poor Argo.

Joxer stepped in as Gabby raised her staff in the direction of the horse.

“GABRIELLE!” Xena shouted horrified.

“Let me try” Joxer said quietly, having maneuvered around the opposite side of the cart as Gabrielle.

“Like *you* can do anything Joxer” Gabrielle sneered.

Xena glared at the bard. “Try” she nodded curtly. Joxer’s gentleness just might calm Argo. Xena could feel the *power* of the cart. She suspected Argo did too. As well as her own growing frustration with Gabby, which if Argo sensed it, was probably taking as directed to her.

{Shh, shh, it’s okay, Argo. The cart isn’t going to hurt you.} Joxer said silently looking Argo in the eye and stroking her nose.

Finally, Argo was convinced the cart was safe and they were on their way to Corinth.

Gabby griping all the way.



Iphicles sat in horrified shock. Some crazed goddess he didn’t recognize had come and taken his love! If this was somehow Hercules’ fault for angering the gods his little brother would pay for this. (Unfair perhaps, but Iphicles couldn’t think of a single incidence of gods appearing and directly interfering in his life that couldn’t be traced back to Hercules pissing someone on Olympus off)

“Tartarus!” Iphicles roared when for the second time in less than 15 minutes a goddess appeared in his bedchamber.

Evidently a goddess, judging by her arrival in his bedchamber. But she looked so very young. A little girl barely into her teens clad in a long demure gown that covered her chin to ankles and long golden hair. The eyes were soft dark brown.

Her eyes bugged at Iphicles appearance. “Put some clothes on!” she gasped. “Daddy is going to kill me as is, don’t want being in naked guys bedroom on the list of my crimes!” She waved her hand and Iphicles found himself clad in a heavy dark wine colored dressing gown.

Iphicles noticed the Hephaestian chains that they’d used to bind Hercules after he went crazy from one of Hera’s spells a few years back. (No, he was not going to get into how the chains made their way from a store room to his bedchamber) Iphicles advanced on the girl who swallowed nervously.

The shackle clamped on her delicate wrist before Harmonia realized what happened. Her nephew was good, she’d give him that. But that was to be expected, he *was* War’s great grandson on his father’s side. A moment of panic had her wanting to yell for her mom, or Daddy Heph. But then she might be in even worse trouble for being on earth unescorted. Ter was helping En deliver the babies to Joxer, and checking with some of the generals over the up coming war. A slight glamour Ter could impersonate their dad at the couple temples he needed to make appearances at and En knew what their fathers priests were yammering on about, she could stay invisible and whisper into Ter’s ear what he should tell the priests and warlords.

The flash of panic in the dark eyes made Iphicles momentarily feel guilty. Goddess or not, this girl was little more than a child.

“I’m sure you’re kinda nervous of the gods--Uncle Jerk manages to piss everyone off. But I’m just here to talk to you. And I’m not breaking any laws doing it either. You are a demi god of Aggression, great-grandson of Ares to be exact and we’ve got a family emergency, and you just got recruited for Damage control.” Harmonia rambled nervously.

“I don’t give a damn what is your little emergency, child! I want to know who abducted Jace and I want him back!”

“Jace? Abducted?” she gasped. “Jacey? Likes to wear dresses has 2 brothers, Jett--the King of Assassins and Joxer who hangs out with Xena and the damned loudmouth? Someone took Jacey!!”

“A goddess. And how in Tartarus do you know Jace?”

“He’s my cousin. The triplets are Strife’s. C’mon as much trouble as those three cause in their own ways--how can their dad be anyone but Mischief himself” Harmonia said exasperated, how she knew Jace wasn’t important, she‘d never met the triplets actually but Strife bragged about his boys constantly. “What happened exactly? Do you know who took him? Can you describe the goddess?”

“She had bright pink hair, pink gown. Giggling insanely. Jace called her Lady Eris and Gran. She---” Iphicles frowned this next sounded utterly ridiculous “she said something about shopping and decorating and disappeared”

He stared as the girl wavered on her feet then plunked down on the floor looking near ready to cry. “Oh gods, MOMM-MMEEE!” she shouted.

Iphicles eyes widened as a harried Aphrodite appeared in his bedroom.

Aphrodite saw red once it registered what she was seeing. Her youngest daughter in Hephaestian chains the other end of the chain held by a man in a bedroom that reeked of sex! A half second later it registered who the man was. Instead of blasting him to Tartarus with the pink energy ball in her hand she snarled. “Talk fast and your explanation of why you have my daughter chained in your bedroom better be damned good, Iphy, or you’re going to get to know Hades real well”

Iphicles screamed the short version of Jace’s abduction and the girl’s appearance. “Tartarus! No wonder the gods are crazy with the way you goddesses act!”

“You’re Arry’s alright” Dite rolled her eyes, amused at how much Iphy looked and sounded like Ares just then. “Jacey should be safe with Rissy. Even as out of it as she is now, Rissy wouldn’t hurt him”

“WHO IN TARTARUS IS THIS LADY ERIS!!!!” Iphicles roared

“His grandma--Dad’ s twin sister. Eris, Goddess of Discord” Harmonia explained. “Mom, can you try to trace Aunty E’s signature? That’s why I yelled”

Dite raised an eyebrow at her daughter. “That doesn’t explain why you’re here”

“He’s family. The war coming. Giving him the scoop to keep Uncle Jerky-boy out of the line of fire.”

“Do Anteros and Enyo know where you are?”

“No, they’re doing the temple rounds after dropping off the babies.” Harmonia said reluctantly.

Dite’s eyebrow arched farther up. “You were left alone”

Harmonia chewed her bottom lip. “Uhmmm, no. Dei and Pho were to escort me anywhere I needed to go. But mom, c’mon Dei and Pho? I just wanted a quick talk with Iphicles. I made sure he was alone and it’s not like Iphy would hurt me. I looked over the halls of time real good about Iphy and Daddy watches him a lot on the scrying mirror he’s got set for us kids. What kind of escort are those two anyway. I needed to talk to Iphy--and trying to keep those two in line while I was doing it…” she whined pleadingly. Puppy dog eyes usually didn't work on her mother, but she was turning them on full strength anyway.

“Your butt better be back on Olympus in 20 minutes or less. I’ll check the halls of time!” Dite snapped. “And don’t ditch the twins without Enyo going with you got that, young lady”

“Yes, mom” Harmonia sighed relieved she wasn't in *too much* trouble.

Dite concentrated on the confused power signature that barely resembled Eris’ and flashed out.

Iphicles unchained the young goddess and demanded she talk fast. His head spun at the explanation of Eris accidentally getting the potion meant for Cupid on her. The gods of War, Love, and Mischief were now infants in the care of Joxer. And there was a war that would come very near Corinth’s out-lying territories, but wouldn’t touch Corinth. She and Enyo would make sure that the looting didn’t touch any villages under the protection of Corinth. Corinth HAD to stay out of this war.

“Why not just stop this war” Iphicles glared.

Harmonia sighed. “Zeus decreed the war take place. The one warlord’s daughter refused the honor of bedding the old goat. He put a time deadline on it. There’s no way you can get out of a war the king of the gods seal is on. Besides once they learned of it the Fates got in on it. Couple of conceptions of some future important people have to take place. And Gaia got in on it because there is going to be some serious drought in the one territory--the one that’s supposed to lose, next year. If many of the warriors are dead, a good chunk of the women and children carted off to a territory that won’t be effected by the drought Uncle Hades won’t be over ran trying to find babysitters for starved to death children in the Elysian Fields. There’s a whole bunch of other terms conditions and mandates tacked onto this damn war. Dad doesn’t start wars just cause he wants some blood shed. Bar fight yeah, maybe even a petty feud to work of some frustrations if both parties deserve an ass kicking anyway but not a full fledged war. Grandpa can’t know what really is going on or he’ll destroy the Houses of Aggression and set up that twit Herc as the new god of War and then Greece is doomed. Herc couldn’t handle the power and he doesn’t have ability to see anything but black and white war is evil. It doesn’t work that way! Even *I* know that and I’m 15 and belong to the house of Love!”

“You better get back. I’ll do what I can about my brother. And if you need help--I’ve planned a few attacks and sieges before. And if I hear any rumors of Jace and Lady Eris?”

“Pray to me or Enyo, or Mom or Daddy Heph. Or all of us. We’ll hear ya”

“You better go before you get in worse trouble”

Harmonia nodded and disappeared.

“Keep Herc from interfering in a war?” Iphicles sighed to the empty room. Why couldn’t he have been given an easier task--like say curing the plague?




Eris flashed into her favorite temple with her naked and confused grandson in tow.

“Gran,”

“Oh hush, don’t be such a boring poop! Now you need some clothes! All my priests are gonna be drooling over you. And you don’t want your sweetie-pie all jealous.” Eris giggled. She waved her hand and Jace was dressed in a brilliant purple frothy gown that had a v-neck nearly to his navel and a hem that barely covered his rear.

Eris chewed her lip “No. that won’t do”

Jace quickly became dizzy looking in the mirror that appeared in front of him. His grandmother standing behind him changing his clothing with each blink. What had to have been several hundred outfits later Eris settled on a scarlet silk tunic and white leather skirt with a slit to the hip for Jace.

“Hungry? Lets get some breakfast. I am just starving for some good Chinese food” Eris grabbed her grandson’s hand and flashed out.

Jace blinked and swayed when they reappeared on Earth. China? Gods, he was in China. CHINA?? His grandmother had drug him to China for Chinese food instead of merely materializing it in her temple? Jace, overwrought by the mornings bizarre events and the unaccustomed flashing from place to place, fainted.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{CHINA??}

“JACEY!!!!!” Jett shouted aloud. Putting as much power into willing his brother to hear and answer him as he could, feeling Joxer doing the same.

“I can’t pick up where he is Auto. I can’t sense him” Jett whispered brokenly.

“This family has survived through so many cosmic fuck ups it isn’t even funny.” Auto said firmly. “We’ll get Eris back to normal and get Jace back safe.”

The momentary display of non-psychotic emotions tamped down and the King of Assassins was firmly back in control of himself. He sent a vicious combination prayer and demand for personal appearance to his chosen god (and equally psychotic cousin) Pain.

~~~~~~~~~

“Oh, damn damn damn!” Deimos gasped panicking nearly as much as his twin. This day *sooo* totally sucked. Now they lost their little sister!

“What, did you pick up where Harmie is? We are so dead when Ter and En find out we lost her”

“I’ve been in the Halls of Time, twits” Harmonia said entering her father’s study. Which was true, she had gone there to get a better study of the events that were leading up to the war that was now in her hands, and Enyo’s. As well as a better idea of what was going to work on getting the people they needed to have specific events happen to happen. She’d simply made a little detour to chat with Iphicles.

“Jett! He’s giving me a headache with his prayer. Something’s happened to Jace”

“Let’s go” Harmonia said grabbing Deimos’ hand.

“What should I do?”

“Go start a bar fight in Sparta” Harmonia snapped at Phobos giving her brother something to do other than panicking himself into utter worthlessness to them all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


“DAD!!! Really need to talk to you! NOW!” Autolycus shouted up at the sky.

Hermes appeared only a split second before Deimos and Harmonia. And was immediately infuriated.

“DEIMOS! You know better than to bring Harmonia to earth!”

“It was my idea to come with him, Uncle Hermie”

Hermes glared at the puppy dog eyes that Harmonia was inflicting upon him. “Oh no you don’t, young lady. You will not cover for your brother”

“IT WAS HER IDEA!” Deimos shouted. He and Pho *always* got in trouble for the girls trouble-making if they were anywhere in the general vicinity. Granted not by their mom. Mom knew better but Dad and Daddy Heph were another story. Dad and Daddy Heph were firmly convinced their precious baby girls did no, or at least very little, wrong. The only consolation, the girls got in trouble for “covering” for Dei and Pho when they actually fessed up to what happened.

“Gran’s gone wacko and she’s got Jacey and we can’t sense him. A couple thoughts is all we’ve gotten and then---nothing” Jett snarled. “What in Tartarus is going on! And WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT HAPPENED TO DAD!!!”

“Strife didn’t go and get himself killed again” Hermes whimpered. That had been sheer Tartarus. Eris and Ares absolutely impossible to be around until the younger god had been released by Hades.

“You picked up something from Jace?”

“China” Jett glared.

“Uncle Hermie,” Harmonia batted pathetic puppy eyes at her Uncle. “Go tell mom to look in China for Aunty E and Jacey PLEASE”

Hermes growled. Damn puppy dog eyes! He was glad he had only boys. Their pathetic looks were bad enough, but a little girl with puppy eyes! ARGH!

“Go on, Dad, these two can tell us what we want to know” Auto spoke up.

Hermes frowned noticing how his son was literally *petting* the King of Assassins back. Oh no. His happy, sweet, little thief tangled up with Strife’s psychotic killer! Oh yeah, he wanted a word or two with Aphrodite. Jace, Hermes wouldn’t have minded. And Joxer, well, someone so gentle and sweet, Hermes would have been thrilled. But *nooo*, not his contrary son. Had to go and fall for the psychopath!






Baby Strife whimpered in his sleep. Walking next to the cart, Joxer reached in and stroked his dad’s cheek. “Shh, it’s okay” Strife tried to burrow under Cupid as they both slept.

Ares was awakened. Cranky, exhausted with the sense that something was wrong.

Joxer concentrated on listening to what Jett was repeating to him from Harmonia and Deimos’ explanation of what in the pits of Tartarus had happened.

“WILL YOU SHUT UP, GABBY!!!” Joxer roared stopping in his tracks turning his concentration back to his brother.

Gabrielle did shut up. She gaped at Joxer, resembling a fish on dry land the way her mouth was working.


Xena halted Argo and looked back worriedly at Joxer.

{Shit, Jett, that’s going to generate a *lot* of energy that is going to hit Ares like a ton of rocks! And Dad’s gonna share some of that too, you know there’s going to be plenty of malicious mischief energy given off. I don’t think they can take it in the shape they’re in. And Thena’s priestesses. That’ll generate a good power blast to Cupe. He’s the God of Love and Lust after all. They’re far too little to take massive power surges! }

Joxer sensed his brother relaying that worry to Ares children, giving them something else to work out.

Baby Ares began to fuss angrily.

“Shhh, shhh, Arry. Jett found out. Hermes went to tell Dite to look for Gran and Jacey in China.”

Cupid woke up with a scream of sheer agony.

“JETT!!!! POWER SURGE HIT CUPE!!! GET ASCLEPIUS NOW!!!!” Joxer shouted.

“Jett left, you idiot, he can’t hear you” Gabrielle sneered.

Joxer ignored her. It took all of Xena’s willpower not to slap her friend. Strife awoke whimpering in terror. Ares began wailing with helpless rage. Xena was at Joxer’s side in a heartbeat holding her hands out for her father. Trying to calm him while Joxer went to see to her brother.

Joxer stumbled, nearly dropping to his knees. The emotions and physical pain he was being bombarded with nearly overwhelming him. Being empathic well and truly *sucked*.

“Herc, I’m telling you we are no where north of Corinth!” a voice came drifting to them from a distance.

“Well, how would we have gotten *south* of Corinth when we were 10 days north when we camped last night” Hercules voice came, nearer now.

“Well, gee, Herc, mmmmm--how about your dad’s side of the family?” Iolaus shot back sarcastically as the pair came into sight. “Who did you piss off lately?”

Joxer ignored them as best he could and tried to pick up Cupid. He was so unsteady he couldn’t risk it.

“Xena?” Joxer hissed through gritted teeth, trying to crawl into the cart but barely able to stand. “Power surge, big one, Cupe too little..”

“Hercules! Put Joxer in the Cart by Cupid NOW” Xena shouted. She wasn’t completely sure what was wrong with Joxer but the explanation of Cupid’s heartbreaking screams of agony made sense to her. And she’d also caught on that the Triplets had more than one secret between them, mostly all tracing back to the fact their father was a god.

“NOW!!!” Xena shouted at the demigod who was standing there like a dumb bump on a log.

“What is going on!” Hercules demanded feeling the presence of a god.

Xena snarled, a sound worthy of her father, as Hercules began listening to Gabrielle’s renewed ranting.

It was Iolaus who gave Joxer a boost into the cart next to the screaming winged infant.

“Take Dad, Iolaus” Joxer managed through gritted teeth pulling Cupid to lay on his chest {JETT!!!! WE NEED ASCLEPIUS NOW!!!!!!} Trying to will some of the power from the baby, who couldn’t channel and contain it into himself.

{Hang on, little bro. Hang on. Deimos went to find him. Harm’s with us for a bit. She’s worn out. Not used to popping back and forth from Olympus}

Iolaus took the baby Joxer called dad. The whimpering infant protesting loudly at being taken away from the winged baby.

“SEE!! Joxer called Strife Dad! He is so Strife’s son!” Gabrielle shouted triumphantly at Hercules.

{Zap her one, Dad, my hands are full} Xena prayed to Ares. The tiny war god gladly answered the unorthodox prayer his daughter sent him with a stinging little energy ball that caught Gabrielle full on the mouth.

{Xena, don’t encourage him!}


Xena nearly dropped her father at the shock of Joxer’s voice in her head. Well, that confirmed her suspicions of mind speech between the triplets, she supposed.

“ARES!!” Hercules roared grabbing the infant by his pajamas right out of Xena’s arms holding the war god up by a fistful of black footed sleeper. “You Malicious bastard! How dare you attack, Gabrielle”


“HERC!!!!” Xena and Iolaus roared furiously. Xena added “Give me my father back NOW!”

Joxer shouted for the only god he could think of who might actually be of help “HEPHAESTUS!!!!!” his shout sounding as pain-filled as Cupid’s continued screams.

Iolaus struggled with the flailing frantic baby sobbing in his arms. He didn’t want to drop Strife, but the baby wasn’t making it easy to keep ahold of him.

“You son of a bitch! You’ve turned Xena evil again!” Hercules shouted shaking the furiously crying baby Ares. He drew his free fist back, making ready to punch the infant god.

“You accursed brat!” Hephaestus roared. Hercules barely registered the arrival of his half brother before Ares was flashed out of his grip and an energy ball sent him flying into a tree head, first knocking him unconscious. Gabrielle raised her staff to attack Hephaestus and received the same forced journey into Morpheus’ realm ala tree to the head.

Deimos and a very wide eyed and confused Asclepius in chains flashed in.


“Fix Cupe!” Deimos shouted in Asclepius face.

“Fix Cupe?” Hephaestus demanded, automatically cradling the squalling Ares to his chest expertly. He’d had more than his share of experience with babies over the centuries after all. He unconsciously stuck his finger in the baby’s mouth. Force of habit, fussing babies generally liked something to suck on. He didn’t notice the furiously disgruntled look Ares gave him at all. Ares toothless attempts to bite the finger in his mouth didn’t even register with Hephaestus, who assumed his infant older brother was teething. “What’s wrong with Cupid?”

“Joxer said a power surge” Xena spoke up. “ A big one, too big for Cupe to take like he is now”

“Calm down, Strife, you’re gonna make me drop ya. Asclepius is here now. It’ll be okay” Iolaus muttered frustrated. Too unsettled himself to soothe the frantic infant in his arms very well, but he was trying.

“Unchain Asc!” Heph snapped at Deimos. “He can’t do anything with those chains!”

Iolaus was of the opinion that Asclepius was too shocked and confused to do much chains or no chains right then.

Argo had tried to be good. She really had. She was well trained, from Ares personal stables, but all the shifting energies in the air combined with the shouting was too much. She bolted, dragging the cart and the most unsettling energy surges behind her.




Go to Sparta. Start a bar fight. That was mischief. Gotta cover for Strife. Bar fight. Good idea. Good mischief. That was something that Strife would do.. Phobos flashed himself down to Sparta only a few seconds after Harmonia and Deimos had left.

Phobos surveyed the city square.

Wait a minute. This was *Sparta* It was barely past nine in the morning! How in Tartarus did you start a bar fight in *Sparta* at nine in the morning. Well, for that matter how did you start a bar fight in Sparta at midnight? C’mon *Sparta*--it was full of Spartan’s for Hades’ sake! Spartan’s didn’t have fun. Spartan’s didn’t have a sense of humor. ‘Thena with a bad case of PMS had a better sense of humor than Sparta’s resident’s.

“Well, Cerberus’ shit” Phobos muttered. Now what was he supposed to do? He was all to happy to let Deimos be Harmonia’s sole escort since Harmonia really shouldn’t be popping down to earth at all young as she was.

What did he do now? He had to start *some* commotion. He looked around the main square.

Everyone in drab clothes of sturdy sensible fabric. All clean and tidy and stark and---well, creepy. There wasn’t even some dog crap to make someone step in. it was all too *clean*. The people were all milling about so *orderly*. No pick pockets, no running children or dogs. What was that movie Strife manipulated a mirror in the Halls of Time to watch and ended up with nightmares for months--Stepford something. Life without mischief a thing to terrify Strife. Sparta was very Stepfordy. (Phobos remembered the Stepford part at least--that one word was good for a little rush of power from the panic it instilled in Strife)

Sparta’s merchants were even boring. Selling plain sturdy cloth. Sensible clunky shoes. Vegetables. No jewelry, No fancy pottery (all crock ware in Sparta seemed to have to be standard issue ugly and clunky judging by what was for sale)

Snake! Snake was good for a panic rush, and it would be mischief to put one in one of the merchant’s carts.

Three Spartan women looking over bolts of cloth didn’t so much as blink at the harmless but big and ugly nearly four foot long bull snake that suddenly appeared on the cloth. One simply grabbed it by the tail and flung it on the cobble stones Calling to her 10 yr old son to drag the snake home and kill it, skin it for a belt. The child actually obeyed. Scary. Sparta made Phobos’ skin crawl.

A carrot avalanche from a vegetable sellers cart, merely had the carrots quickly picked up. The seller given a warning by the city guard and a discount put on the carrots.

Spartans were *boring*!

“Fine, unimaginative zombies! Take that” Phobos muttered. The dancing gorilla in the harem slave outfit started a panic. Phobos chuckled. Well, it was possible to shake up Spartan’s. It just took some major extremes.

Phobos burst out laughing when the city guard tried placing the gorilla under arrest. Morons. Well, at least they were reacting.

Glamour in place--check. Phobos appeared floating in mid-air to the residents of Sparta in the guise of Strife. That *really* caused an uproar and panic. The God of Mischief targeting their freakily boring and perfect city.

Phobos stopped laughing at the hapless Spartans when he was bombarded by waves of Panic. He immediately flashed to the source of that panic--a good amount of godly panic as well as mortal panic mixed together. Something was seriously wrong. So much energy coursing through him, Phobos was beyond being a bit heady from it--he was getting downright drunk off of it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Phobos flashed to near where the panic was coming from. A horse pulling a cart barreling straight at him. His sister’s horse. The babies cart. A glow of soft red energy encompassing the cart and spreading towards the horse. Baby screaming.

Phobos simply stared in horror as Argo was going to run him down. He crouched a bit covering his head with his arms “Fuck this is gonna hurt” he whimpered not having the presence of mind that he *could* get out of the way.

**flash**

“Huh? Wha?” Phobos found himself sitting on the charging Argo’s back. How in Tartarus did that happen? *HE* didn’t do it.

{Stop Argo} a pain strangled voice said in his head.

Stop Argo? Argo? Who was Argo? Oh, yeah the horse. He was on a Horse? Horse. Bad. Very bad. Horse. Didn’t like horses. Horses big, scary, bite. No. No horsey. (Phobos hated horses had since he was 6 and snuck into the stall of a mean stallion his father forbid him to go near. ) Horse. He was on a horse. Stop? Oh yeah! Horsey please stop!

{Stop Argo!!!} the pain-strangled voice shouted again breaking through Phobos’ jumbled thoughts.

“Where the fuck are the brakes!!” Phobos wailed. Clinging to the horse, praying to his father not to let the big bad horse eat him.

--

{Calm!} the agonized voice shouted in Phobos head. A strange sensation of--is this what peacefulness and clarity felt like? Phobos couldn’t say for sure but for the first time he could remember he was able to think with out his own godhood scrambling his thoughts thanks to his grandfather--though his parents didn’t know he and Dei had accidentally found that one out.

Argo slowed and stopped at the insistent tugging on her bridle.

“Nice horsey” Phobos swallowed, the jumbled panic that was normal for his state of mind returning. “don’t stomp me or eat me” He pled, sent a barely coherent prayer to Asclepius not to let what happened to him and Dei happen to Cupid, then fainted, falling off Argo into the dirt.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jett sensed the power Joxer was drawing off of Cupid. Damn it ! He was taking too much. Jox was going to be killed! Jox’s feeble attempt to take part of the power surge slowly destroying Cupid had nudged some instinct in the infant Love god, who sent as much of the power surge as he could unconsciously direct at Joxer.

Harmonia was pale and shaking on the verge of passing out, still just a child she had overtaxed her energy stores, a very dangerous thing for a goddess as young as she was. Poor girl was looking worse by the second. 2 jaunts to earth using her own power, and bringing Deimos with her power had her in nearly as desperate need of Asclepius’ attention as Cupid.

Jett had no warning at all as the blazingly painful force of energy slammed into him. Joxer had some how managed to get Cupe to send it along the link the brother’s shared. {Harmonia} Joxer’s mental voice an agonized barely conscious whisper.

“GIRL! Take this damn it before it kills Cupe Jox and me” Jett hissed at the more unconscious than not young goddess grabbing her hand as he collapsed in the dirt next to her.

Auto swallowed watching helplessly as a brilliant red glow began to engulf his lover and their young cousin. Despite his assurances to Jett that The Houses of Aggression had survived all of a manner of calamities. This just might be one that the Houses of War and Love didn’t scrape through in tact.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Asclepius was beyond confusion. The frantic incoherent prayer form Phobos who had never prayed to him before only adding to the confusion. Deimos had flashed into his temple threw the chains on him and flashed them to here with out a word until the frantic demand of “Fix Cupe!” had been screamed in his face.

Asclepius’ services had never been requested for a member of the Houses of Aggression before. Both the Houses of Love and War held themselves apart, never asked for anything from the rest of the pantheon, very odd group actually. Dite socialized with the rest of the Pantheon, but she was really the only one who ventured out of the Court of Aggression on Olympus regularly.

“Hephaestus?”

“Energy surge, Cupid got reverted to an infant.” Hephaestus said swallowing. Concentrated a second. “Got where they are, bout 2 miles up the road--let’s go”

Asclepius grabbed Iolaus, still struggling with the screaming Strife. Deimos grabbed Xena. Hephaestus holding Ares flashed away first, the others following. Herc and Gabrielle, unconscious and momentarily forgotten where they lay.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The red glow encompassing Cupid and Joxer had stretched out and caught Phobos in it’s web as well.

Asclepius was at a loss. This was unheard of. Infant and children gods were protected by their parents and the symbol of their godhood. Once the symbol of godhood was created, the parents would use their own energy to control the flow of power to the child. A massive blast of energy could quite honestly fry an infant god’s mind.

Don’t let Cupe be like me and Dei Asclepius gasped with sudden realization. Tartarus is *that* what had happened to the twins? But how? Ares was vicious in making sure the symbol and wards were set up almost immediately after all his children were born. Even though traditionally there was a three day window before new gods were pronounced and their godhood activated.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Autolycus stared in horror as the glow became brighter. Well shit. Hoping he had enough godly blood to survive it he dove into the glow on the other side of Harmonia, reaching for Jett with gritted teeth as the burning energy began seeping into him as well. Holding his lover tightly with their young cousin protectively sandwiched between them. He didn’t even notice when they flashed away.

~~~~~~~~~

Asclepius blinked at the trio that appeared in the dirt next to Phobos. Hephaestus tried to grab him but Deimos was too quick and jumped into the glow at the first of Phobos’ screams of pain and in a heartbeat was clinging to his twin adding his own howls of pain to the din.

Xena quickly catching on to the situation gritted her teeth and dove into the cart with Cupid and Joxer.

“Hephaestus?” Asclepius swallowed. He was the god of Medicine and Healing, but this was far beyond his scope. This was the very nature of godhood, it couldn’t be stopped, if the wards weren’t in place, the power symbols readied to store the excess energy, there was really nothing that could be done.

“I know, do what you can with this ends” Hephaestus swallowed. {{APHRODITE COME QUICKLY}}

~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Jett! Dite, *JETT*!” Hermes was whining.

Dite was ignoring her brother. Trying to find Eris and Jace with with mirrors in the halls of time. She’d exhausted herself trying to track Eris and search China. Her husband’s frightened summons pierced her concentration. “Gotta jet” she snapped at Hermes and flashed out.

“I’m not done talking to you” Hermes shouted and followed her signature. “Oh shit” he gasped when he saw where he was and what was happening.

Dite shouted “ANTEROS!” and began trying to draw the glowing red energy into herself. Within seconds Anteros and Enyo arrived with Anteros helping his mother siphon off the energy. Which was even hurting the two of them. Dite was among the most powerful of the goddesses. She and Eris were equal, perhaps not even Hera stronger than they were. Anteros at 500 was quite powerful in his own right. But honestly over half of the energy of the House of love went to Cupid who could withstand the most of it, the strongest of them. In the past few centuries Cupid had become nearly as powerful as his father. The two of them kept the houses of Aggression from being overwhelmed by the almost continuous flow of energy that came to the members of War and Love.

What seemed an eternity later, but in reality only moments the glow dissipated as the energy was fully absorbed.

“Oh gods no” Asclepius whispered staring in absolute shock. He quickly scanned Jett, then Auto, then Xena. Scanned Joxer a second time.

“Asc?” Dite asked in a small voice.

Asclepius scanned Cupid first of the gods caught in the power surge. His mind seemed whole. Cupid began glowing again. Asclepius kept the scanning link open--searching as Cupid grew, the energy aging him to about 10 months old.

Harmonia was next. The young goddess’ energy stores had been deathly low, the energy she’d taken on had actually probably saved her life. She too still seemed mentally sound, physically exhausted but the problem was her godhood was now fully hers. The energy had broken the warding, and she was fully in control of her own godhood without any of the childhood protections. Something that did not happen in the normal course of things until at least 100, if not later. Many godlings were up to 250 before they took full control of the godhoods and could manage the energy.

Though the members of the Houses of Aggression seemed to take full control of their godhoods very young. Between 100 and 150. Even Enyo had full control of her godhood already young as she was, in godly terms, at 110. But 15?? Harmonia was just a baby yet.

Deimos and Phobos, the tangled mess of their minds made Asclepius cringe. What in Tartarus had happened to cause that? But the damage to the two of them was as old as they were.

“Asclepius?” Dite asked her voice trembling, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Damn how could she have been so stupid. But Ares, Cupid and Strife were fully adult gods, had had control of their godhoods for centuries--couple millennia in Ares case. It simply hadn’t occurred to her that their physical size would……

“Cupid and Harmonia are fine” Asclepius said slowly. “Just need a few hours sleep to acclimatize the energy. Harmonia has full possession of her godhood though Dite. Deimos and Phobos, there’s no new damage, but I can’t undo the old damage.”

“We know, we tried” Heph said tightly. With renewed fury at his father with the reminder of what had happened to the twins. They had all taken every precaution, not even allowing Hera or Illythia examine Dite, or attend to her during the birth. Though it doubtful that any on Olympus would believe it, it had primarily been the gods of War and Fire that had delivered the children of the houses of Aggression. With the exception of Bliss whom a panicking Dite had delivered. Psyche refusing to allow Heph or Ares in the room. Ares, Eris, Dite and Heph had learned early and harshly to never show weakness, taught themselves as much rudimentary healing as they could. Closed ranks tightly to protect themselves, and later the children, from Zeus.

“Auto?” Hermes swallowed. A blast of godly energy that strong---he was absolutely terrified of what that energy would do to a demigod.

“He’s well, there’s no damage but….”

“BUT!!!!” Hermes roared.

“They’re all gods. Jett, Auto, Xena, Joxer---their godly blood definitely saved their lives, no mortal would have survived, but somehow--they’re gods” Asclepius said. “With full possession of their godhoods. They all seem mentally sound that I can tell. No brain damage. Physically sound. Need a little rest. But---they’re gods.”




"Gods of what and how are we gonna keep the war from killing dad?” Enyo asked, stating what pretty much everyone was thinking.

Asclepius changed the focus of his continued monitoring of the group. “Xena is the Goddess of Strategy” He concentrated a bit more.

“Auto?” Hermes asked. Asclepius waved his hand at him as if shooing a fly and continued to concentrate. The energy levels of this lot were still unsettled and a bit hard to read, he had been continuously rechecking them to make sure he hadn’t missed anything.

“Jett is the God of Retribution” Asclepius said slowly.

“Auto”

Asclepius shoo-fly waved at Hermes annoyed. “Auto’s the god of--Trickery and Intrigue”

“Trickery?” Hermes eyebrows shot up.

Asclepius glared at his uncle. “Well God of Thieves and Liars was already taken” he said sarcastically.

“Joxie?” Dite asked in a small voice.

“Peace” Asclepius answered a bit shakily.

Anteros gaped. “Oh shit”



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“SISTERS!!” Clotho shouted. Today was supposed to be a slow day. They were taking turns as the only one at the loom. But all of a sudden the Pattern had begun taking to rearranging itself madly.

Lachesis and Atropos hurried to Clotho and gaped at the Pattern.

“This wasn’t supposed to happen!” gasped Lachesis. “Peace isn’t supposed to be be awakened for 2000 years or so and end the Twilight

“There, that one should have been Peace” Atropos found the thread of the future pattern. She traced it back “He’s now Vengeance. Still the son of War and his consort sent to the future. But his thread is tangled up there--with an Amazon Chosen One’s and a follower of Hecate. And practically melded to a Bacchae! How in Tartarus--look the Bacchae, son of Cupid and---wait, no Lachesis trace that thread”

“William, son of Love and Mischief” Lachesis murmured wide eyed. “Oh Hades, look, Evander’s thread”

The son of War and Nemesis (who had returned to her godhood after the whole staging of War supposedly killing their son when in fact he was sent forward through time out of Zeus’ reach) Evander’s thread now held the mark of a Bacchae, signifying that he had become one before his godhood activated. Nor was he still slated to be the God of Blood Lust, but the God of Redemption.

“Calm yourselves, girls” Gaia said appearing in the Weaving room.

“Grandmother” Clotho turned wide eyed.

“It is all as it should be. I’m the one responsible for tampering with your loom to hide this from even you” Gaia said gently. Swallowing, her voice held an edge of harsh cold steel. “War shall be given over to Peace, and Olympus will tremble”

“But--grandmother, why--” Atropos began angrily.

“To keep Zeus from trying to destroy Peace.” Gaia frowned at the pattern. “But I have to admit, I never had figured out exactly how this would happen, but this certainly isn’t what I expected.” Yes Mother Nature was supposed to be all knowing, but to have that prophecy fulfilled so literally. Baby War, in diapers, literally handed to Peace for babysitting. She really couldn’t be blamed for not seeing *that* one coming.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Mmmph” Joxer groaned. The sound startling the assembled gods and Iolaus still struggling with the frantic (and still wailing) baby Strife.

Jett leapt to his feet, drawing a knife he’d managed to have hidden somewhere in the leather he wore. “Who’s the idiot behind this?” he snarled. “What in Tartarus happened exactly?”

“Calm down” Joxer muttered sitting up wincing as he did so.

Jett glared at Joxer stalked to Iolaus “Gimme him before ya drop him” yanked his father from the shocked hunter and cradled him tightly against his chest.

“Mom, why aren’t Harm, Cupe, and the twins waking up” Enyo asked in a small voice.

“Asclepius?” Heph asked gruffly.

“They’re fine. Harmonia is just a child and you already know how energy surges must effect the twins. There’s no further damage to the twins, nor any harm to Harmonia and Cupid that rest won’t cure” Asclepius reassured them. “I truly expect Autolycus and Xena to recover before the rest. Joxer and Jett have more godly blood…..” he trailed off at the round of nods. “Could some one enlighten me as to why Deimos drug me here in chains rather than simply ask”

“He’s of the Houses of Aggression” Hephaestus said flatly.

“You don’t ask if you’re of aggression” Hermes agreed, though he had gotten off very lightly, Zeus never seeing a threat in him as he did his legitimate sons (Zeus might have announced Heph wasn’t his but everyone knew better.)

A chaotic purple glow slowly began to form around Strife. Hephaestus willed Ares into Joxer’s lap with a thought as Hermes flashed Strife out of Jett’s hands into his own arms.

The energy surge hitting Strife no where near as powerful as the one that had nearly destroyed Cupid. Hermes and Hephaestus both elder gods and powerful in their own right better capable of controlling and channeling the energy for Strife than foolhardy demigods and godlings had managed with Cupid. The energy surge followed by a small growth spurt aging Strife to perhaps 6 or 7 months of age.

“What are we going to do about the War?” Enyo swallowed. “Even if we try to channel it for him, the energy will kill him and probably all of us”

“Don’t worry Child” a woman with long silver hair and brilliant leaf green eyes rose up from the earth. “I’ll anchor the the three of them. The surges will likely still sting a bit and trigger the growth spurts, but I’m able to withstand the brunt of it”

“Uh, not to be rude madam, --”

“Fuck rude, who the hell are ya?” Jett interrupted his brother.

“You’re great great grandmother, young Retribution,”

“Huh?” Joxer frowned


“I’m Gaia”

Asclepius stood rather stunned as Gaia set the anchoring to control the flow of power to the three infant-sized gods. Aphrodite, seen quite frankly as one of the biggest air heads in the universe gathered her wits and her twin sons and youngest daughter returning to Olympus with them. Hephaestus gave those remaining a thorough looking over that made it seem he was reluctant to leave but flashed out to continue the search for Eris A quick worried glance at his son , Hermes flashed out as well, to see if Zeus had noticed the emergence of four new gods under the guise of his daily check in for any messenger duties the old Goat had for him. Common knowledge on Olympus was the house of love populated with shallow idiots and War with heartless maniacs. Asclepius was beginning to think common knowledge was very wrong--but couldn’t really understand why they felt the need to perpetuate such images. He blushed and stammered apologies when Gaia gently chided him that he should be at The Temple of Love and helping Aphrodite with Harmonia and the twins. He flashed out wondering just how wrong the Pantheon was about the houses of Aggression

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Gaia left in relatively short order, before Autolycus and Xena even awoke. Leaving it to Anteros and Enyo to explain the godhoods as best they could. Gaia managed to mask the cart and conjured up each of the new gods and infant gods a pendant that would mask them from Zeus using godly power to find them though that wouldn’t stop Zeus from flashing himself--and forcing a good number of the others of the Pantheon--about looking for them. As well as tearing apart everyone’s sanctuaries and temples to see if anyone dared hide the new gods from him so not even Gaia dared risk hiding them. Not just yet, too much of her own energy was tied in the controlling of the power of Ares, Strife and Cupid’s godhoods.

Enyo and Anteros left almost immediately after Gaia, hearing their mother’s summons. They did little more than to tell Jett and Joxer they were now gods but warned them not to do anything.

“Gods? OF WHAT!” Jett shouted.

Iolaus sighed and began explaining exactly what happened while they were unconscious.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Mom?”

“What was that ‘oh Shit’, Anteros?” Aphrodite demanded. Over two thousand years before Gaia had told Dite Peace was War’s destiny and when Peace arrived she was to do her best to bring them together. No more than that. Getting Ares and Joxer together--well that would take a miracle.

Anteros cheeks flamed nearly as scarlet as his wings. “I was helping Clio organize some old prophecy scrolls in the temple of History.”

“You don’t blush that hard just organizing dusty scrolls and she’s like 500 years older than me!” Dite snorted. “She is *way* to old for you--”

“Ma, do the sex lecture later please. Who Ter’s sneaking around with behind your back isn’t as important as what he knows about Peace” Enyo interrupted.

“War shall be given over to Peace, And Olympus shall tremble.

The Son of The Sky Shall bring about the twilight” Anteros said struggling to remember. “ There’s several bits of prophecy about Peace. Most of them don’t make a damn bit of sense--mortal seers coming up with them, you know some of them end up living on poppy tea and are driven loony by the visions. But basically they all agree Peace isn’t going to be good for the Sky Gods health.”



“We’re going to have a long talk about dating goddesses older than your mother when your father grows up!” Dite glared at her son.

Enyo sniggered.

“You know what I mean” Dite muttered.



~~~~~~~~~

Jace was weaving on his feet as his grandmother flashed them into a little temple high in the mountains. She stood shaking surveying it.

“Gran?”

“I haven’t been here for over 2000 years” Eris whispered lost in painful memories.

Jace swayed, staggered to collapse on a nearby chair as something “popped” within him. It wasn’t exactly a painful feeling but it certainly was unsettling.

Eris turned tears streaming down her face. Jace, unsure he could stand without falling on his face, held out his arms, in the next instant he had a lapful of his sobbing grandmother. Completely baffled Jace simply held her and did not even attempt to make sense of the abrupt about-face in her behavior

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Auto groaned. “Did anyone se who was driving the wagon that ran over me?”

Xena agreed with a grunt trying to sit. She felt like an entire calvery battalion of War horses had trampled her.

“We have to get out of here before Hercules and Gabrielle wake up and catch up with us” Joxer said after the situation was explained.

“I could talk to Gabby, make her see….” Xena began.

Jett gave his cousin a feral glare.

“We can’t risk it, Xena” Joxer said softly. “Gabby’s so stubborn by the time you got it through her head she would have already done something stupid like summoning Zeus or Apollo. She’s with Hercules. He’ll watch over her. She’ll be perfectly safe, but we won’t be if she’s with us and acts before we can get it through her head what’s actually going on”

“He’s right, Xena” Iolaus said with a sigh. “I hate leaving Herc behind too, but I don’t see any other way. He won’t listen until it’s too late, if then”

Xena nodded reluctantly, seeing the validity of their point. The group got underway. Xena leading Argo with the cart.

A resigned Iolaus walking next to her. Herc had been his best friend for--well, forever, but sometimes being a hero’s sidekick wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Getting caught in godly crossfire wasn’t all that glamorous. He could really do with out seeing Hades again for a good long time. But, winter wasn’t too bad. Hades hosted a mean poker night when Persephone was at her mom’s.

Jett didn’t put his father down all day. Walking on one side of the cart so Strife had the sleeping Cupid in his sights, what little he was awake, sleeping off his own growth spurt. Joxer walked along the opposite side of the cart carrying Ares who fought napping with a vengeance--wanting to keep watch over his son and nephew instead. Joxer cuddled Ares, whispering, snuggling, reassuring every time the emotions of self-loathing and fear raised up.

Iolaus scouted ahead a few times. “There’s a large cave ahead, we can camp there for the night.”

Xena nodded. Some sort of shelter was needed tonight. The threatening storm could practically be tasted in the air.

Jett, Auto, and Joxer were left in the cave to set up the camp while Iolaus and Xena went hunting for supper. Strife’s squeal startled them all. Followed by a wail of confused hunger from Cupid.

“See, he’s okay, he’s awake, Arry” Joxer squeezed the tiny war god a moment. Auto had started the fire, Ares refusing to be put down. Joxer was slowly adding more kindling one-handed trying to keep all stray sparks off the infant.

Jett picked Cupid up. Depositing him and Strife both next to Joxer when he moved away from the fire. Wordlessly went back to the cart dropping diapers, bottles of ambrosia laced milk and a couple extra hard teething cookies by Joxer.

“I wanna head for Corinth, see what I can find out there, any trace of Jacey.” Jett said stroking his father’s spiky hair, his dark eyes boring in to Joxer.

Joxer nodded. “We’ll be fine. We’ll head for our valley. Dad and Gran are the only two who know about it. We should be safe once we get there. Iolaus and Xena will be with me Dad, Arry, and Cupe”

“And Auto” Jett agreed.

“Auto will be going with you” the King of Thieves, and new god of Trickery and Intrigue glared at his lover.

“No you won’t” Jett glared.

“I go with you, or I follow you, your choice” Auto shot back.

Cupid watched the exchange, grinning and drooling around the teething cookie in his mouth.

Auto won. Strife’s precarious ability to stay sitting was lost as he began giggling at the disgruntled look on his oldest son’s face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

A massive crash of thunder preceded the torrential downpour that began just before sunset.

“mmmph owwwww” a whiny voice encroached on Hercules slowly returning awareness. He sat up wincing. Opened his eyes struggling with seeing double for a moment.

“Gabrielle, are you alright?”

“Think so” the Amazon bard whined. “Where--” she looked around whimpering at what moving and looking did to her head. “Xena, the others”

“Ares kidnapped Xena and Iolaus!” Hercules concluded. “FATHER!!!!!!!!!”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zeus’s groaned in dismay. “Oh no, not you, dear, annoying children whining” He shoved the head of a poet dedicated to Athena back down. Maybe if he ignored his son he’d give up. Whining brat was only good for tormenting Ares and Hera with anyway.



The Fates stared in horror at their beloved Tapestry, which had glowed with a chaotic purple energy for just a second, a blink and the energy was gone. They wouldn’t even have been sure what they had seen if not for the fact now it was rearranging itself in the most discordant pattern they had ever seen.

Four new gods, two new goddesses. It was the second goddess that was truly confusing them. She appeared out of nowhere. Absolutely no parentage, godly, demigod or mortal.

Three days this pattern had become more and more chaotic.

“I’m going to the Court of Aggression and see what I can find out” Lachesis announced.

“Huh?” Clotho stared.

“All of this centers around Aggression. Both new goddesses and three of the new gods belong to War, the other god belonging to Love. Whatever went wrong this time--it started in Aggression.”

Atropos and Clotho nodded their agreement reluctantly. None of the three truly willing to admit once in a while there was some cosmic glitch that screwed up the pattern--usually attributed to Zeus sticking something where it didn’t belong. In the last couple decades it had often been Hercules stopping events that must happen for the pattern to continue as it should (but that could also be blamed on Zeus, because if he hadn’t gone sticking something where it didn’t belong there would be no Hercules to screw things up)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So much for not helping the kids” Dite sighed as she glanced in at Deimos and Phobos. The two sleeping, still out of sorts from the blast of love energy they’d taken on which seemed to have caused some sort of allergic reaction within their godly natures. It shouldn’t have truly, energy was energy. If the Love aspect of it had effected them in the normal course of things--well the most likely result would be a few grandchildren in a few months. But the twins godhoods and minds permanently scarred by Zeus’ treachery this was taking them longer to recover from than in should. Asclepius had put them in a healing sleep until the energy dissipated.

Dite leaned her ear against the door across the hall from the twins. Harmonia trying to learn to fully control her godhood. Once the childhood wards had been broken there was no way to reinstate them.

“Maffy, it’s just too hard!” Dite heard her youngest cry.

“Shh, shh, you’re doing fine. Look how far you’ve come in three days, squirt. Took me a good six months to fully get a handle on my godhood and I was almost a hundred and thirty” Dite heard her son comfort Harmonia. “You take a nap, squirt, and we’ll try again this afternoon”

Hermaphroditus wasn’t really all that surprised to see his mother in the hall.

“How she doing, Maff?”

“Great, except for the fact it took Enyo about two hours to acclimate her godhood fully”

“En was ninety and prepared” Dite sighed.

“She’s fifteen and the baby, ma. Everyone got to do everything first, better or already has a bunch of stuff filed under adventures to tell your grandkids about. She’s just being difficult. Too impatient and hard on herself. She’s got Uncle Arry’s perfectionist streak to the extreme”

Dite nodded. Exhausted. She’d been covering not only her own duties, but Cupid’s and Anteros’. And it didn’t look like she’d get much rest again today.

“You could use a nap, mom” Hermaphroditus said gently touching his mother’s cheek.

Dite shook her head. “I’ve got to go see Clio--”

“Mother, Ter is going to be royally pissed if you go butting into his love life. He’s five hundred and two you know. Clio is really sweet.” Hermaphroditus interrupted.

Dite frowned. “Just who all knew about Ter and Clio”

“Mmmmm, well……”

“Hermaphroditus!” Dite said sharply

“Well, all of us kids. Including Strife”

Dite shook her head ruefully. Not at all surprised at that. “As I was saying I am going to see Clio about the Peace Prophecies. See what I can figure out on that. Anteros’ and Clio seeing each other can wait until things get back to normal” she said her tone tired. “You get something to eat and some rest, too, Maffy” She kissed her son’s cheek and flashed out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Enyo sighed. Anteros’ had fallen asleep over the maps. They had less than 24 hours now before the war started. Ter had been exhausting himself covering for Aunty E, Strife and the twins while Enyo was working out the details. Aunt Bia and Uncle Kratos had been brought in to help. Aunt Bia reinforcing the wards about the Court of Aggression and babysitting Bliss who hadn’t set foot out of her mother’s temple since Joxer had become Peace. No hostages for the Old Goat to get his hands on though it would have been so much easier to take him to the Muses to watch.

Uncle Kratos was covering Daddy Heph’s forge while Hephaestus was out physically searching the globe for Aunty E and Jace.

Nemesis and Moros were out searching as well. Lyssa and Momos were rounding up the fringe members of Aggression, bringing them up to the court of Aggression whether they liked it or not. ( Even the insane Callisto was now chained in a store room in the Temple of War). The Asphodelians that were technically allied with Aggression generally had little to do with the Olympians.

“Enyo”

The young goddess of war and horror blinked. “Lethe” she greeted warily. The goddess of forgetfulness had never been to the Court of Aggression before and was equally surprised by what she found as her cousin was by seeing her.

“Aunt Lyssa sent me said I should help you. And Ate should as well” the goddess of Forgetfulness said equally as wary.

“If anyone can find Ate, she’s got her Temple warded so tightly a flea couldn’t get in and won’t answer anyone.” Enyo muttered.

“Enyo, who is Vennie?” an exasperated Bia said appearing with Bliss, in full tantrum mode, struggling in her arms.

“Bliss’ imaginary friend” Enyo shrugged. Bliss had been going on about Vennie since not long after his parents split up. Everyone humored him on his imaginary friend

“Vennie not maginary!!!!!!!!” the little godling roared. His godhood might be Joy and Happiness, but he inherited his grandfather War’s temper. “Vennie’s hungry and her mommy won’t wake up!!!!!”

“Who’s Vennie’s mommy?”


“Ate” Bliss shouted back at his Aunt Enyo.

“Ate doesn’t have a child” Bia rolled her eyes.

“Ate is Vennie’s mommy!” Bliss insisted, loudly, in a tone that just might make mortal ears bleed. “Vennie’s scared and it’s hurtin me. Her mommy is hurted and won’t wake up!”

“How old is Vennie?” Enyo asked frowning.

“Vennie dis many.” He held up four fingers. “ She thinks she’s so bigs now. Cause her birthday’s before mine”

“Oh sh--erm, poopies” Bia gasped, catching herself.

Enyo bit her lip. The goddess of Force might be tiny but she was fierce, and one of the worst berserkers in battle of the whole pantheon. Aunt Bia saying “Oh poopies” was almost enough to send Enyo off into gales of exhausted laugh or cry hysterics. Then Enyo did her own thinking back five years. Ate’s bizarre behavior. (which was mostly overlooked in the whole Cupid and Psyche debacle and then Psyche’s pregnancy.) “Oh poopies” Enyo repeated horrified.



Jace awoke bleary-eyed he stared at his grandmother’s tiny tear stained face. She whimpered in her sleep. Jace hugged her tightly. Her bizarre mood swings were frightening. She was either bouncing off the walls, decorating temples in brilliant colors. (She even ordered her priests at her main temple into magenta and chartreuse robes.) Or she was beyond depressed. Truly beyond coherent, getting lost in horrors masquerading as memories.

He’d spent most of the night holding his hysterical grandmother. She was either raging to “Give her babies back” or cringing sounding about six years old wanting to know why she was so bad, promising she’d be good.

Eris’ eyes snapped open. “My baby is hurt. That bastard hurt my baby!” She screamed furiously.

Jace was glad his stomach was empty as his grandmother flashed them out of the Inn’s room (he really had no clue why his grandmother chose to stay in an Inn in Rome last night)

They appeared in a Roman encampment. “Your grandma needs to take care of you. The bastard’s hurt too many babies” Eris announced and pointed at the Roman who disappeared. “Now for that old bastard” Eris growled, sounding a bit more like her old self.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Enyo blinked. “What in Tartarus! Julius!” she gaped at her nephew. She really couldn’t stand the brat, but had extended her protection over him as soon as she was able. Cupid had been just sick when Zeus had ordered him to rape a Roman woman as punishment, even sicker yet when he found out he had a Roman son he could do little more than watch from afar. Enyo cursed herself yet again for allowing herself to be caught by her grandfather. If she hadn’t been held hostage, Cupid would never have gone near that Roman woman, and Julius wouldn’t exist. She didn’t like him, but she felt responsible for him.

“Some mad goddess with pink hair appeared in my camp. Announced my grandma needed to take care of me cause the bastard’s hurt too many babies and three seconds later here I am”

“Oh shit, she’s going after Zeus” Enyo groaned.

“Shouldn’t say bad words, Aunt Enny” Bliss said solemnly with a little frowning glare. “Daddy and G’ampa an’ G’ampa Hephy don’t like it”

“I know, I’ll try not to do it again” Enyo pacified Bliss. “Julius, you watch Bliss. Bia, Lethe, we gotta get in Ate’s Temple”

“You gonna get Vennie’s mommy fixeded?”

“Yeah, baby, you be good for Julie, kay?”

“I wills” Bliss nodded.

The three goddesses flashed out leaving a very disoriented Roman staring in disbelief at his winged baby half-brother. “Now what am I going to do! I’ve got an army waiting”

“Dunno” Bliss shrugged. “Wanna color? G’ampa Arry made me some coloring scrolls” Aunt Enny was going to take care of Vennie and fix her mommy, so all was right in his world for the moment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How much further, Joxer?” Xena sighed.

“Not much”

“Are you absolutely sure we’re going in the right direction?” Iolaus asked.

“Yes” Joxer said keeping the exasperation out of his tone. Baby Strife was teething and Joxer had been up most of the night with his father. He kept his worry to himself over the babies adult awareness being almost totally gone, withdrawn and sealed up in their unconscious. He really, really wanted to get to the cottage before the war started in the morning. He had a bad feeling about how the growth spurts were going to effect Ares.

And the odd “feel” Argo gave off since the power surge hit Cupid bothered him as well. He was quite perplexed how the horse had even survived. That much raw energy should have stopped her heart at the very least’ if not reduced her to cinders.

“We should make camp” Xena said a little later. The sky once again threatening storms.

“No, it’s only another mile or so. Other side of those woods. I want to be there before that war starts in the morning”

“Are you *sure*?” Xena asked for at least the hundredth time.

“Yes.” Joxer said trying not to clench his teeth or lose his temper.

An hour later Joxer had all he could do not to say “I told you so” when they arrived at the cottage that Strife had made for his sons.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lachesis was furious at being unable to enter the Court of Aggression and began searching for one of them that could possibly tell her *something* about the new Goddess of War Beasts. She supposed she couldn’t blame Aphrodite for going into battle mode. Zeus was not going to be happy when he found out about Peace. Still, the longer it took to get some answers the more aggravated she was getting.

She cornered Hephaestus in Egypt. Raging at him, when she paused for breath he managed to ask the name of the goddess of War Beasts.

“Argo” Lachesis snapped. She threw an energy ball that exploded a boulder near Hephaestus when his eyes bugged and hefell down laughing. Screeching to know what he found so funny. Who was this Argo anyway?




Enyo flashed back into her father’s study.

Julius stood up. A wave of her hand knocked him back into the chair. “Blissy, sweetie, how did you get into Ate’s temple?”

“I felted the sad. Ands it hurted. I just followed the sad and poppeded in and there was Vennie”

“Poppeded?” Enyo frowned.

“Yeah like dis” Bliss said. In a blink he went from the chair to standing behind Enyo, he tugged on her skirt.

Enyo turned and gaped at her little nephew. When in Tartarus had the little stinker learned how to do that?! A small smile twitched at the corners of Enyo’s mouth. Ate had warded her temple against gods fully in control of their godhoods, but not godlings. Of course Bliss and Harmonia were the only two, no just Bliss now, in Aggression who didn’t have full possession of his godhood. Harmonia wasn’t the sneaky type--well, not sneaking into another goddesses temple (spying on and playing pranks on siblings a whole other ballgame) and Blissy just a baby, not even four yet, so Ate likely didn’t thing it necessary to expend the extra energy on barring entry of children from her temple.

“Can you get into Ate’s temple and you and Vennie open the door”

Blonde head bobbed enthusiastically. Enyo grabbed Bliss’ hand and flashed out. Leaving a severely irritated Roman ruler glaring at the empty space where they stood.

“I have an army waiting on me you know!” He shouted into the air. Harrumphed and returned to coloring on the blasted scroll his little brother gave him just to occupy the time. He growled realizing the little shit took the red color with him!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Enyo stared in shock at the sight that greeted them when they finally gained entrance to Ate’s temple thanks to Bliss.

The goddess of Evil and Misfortune lay in a broken heap, barely recognizable, not healing at all. *So* not good, especially since even Enyo could tell the wounds were about a week or so old.

Huddled on the floor next to Ate in the entrance of the temple was a little girl. Slightly smaller than Bliss she was such a tiny thing. Huge dark eyes, wide and terrified. Pale skin. A riot of black curls tumbling down past her shoulders in need of a good brushing and washing.

“Das m’ Aunt Enny. She’ll get your mommy fixeded, Vennie” Bliss said hugging his friend.

“Promise?” a broken little whisper of a sound asked.

“Uh huh pwomise!” Bliss said solemnly, squeezing Vennie tightly.

Bia growled shaking with rage. She’d patched up Eris too many times. All too easy to recognize exactly who was responsible for the shape Ate was in. And Vennie…..well, Bia for one had solved the mystery of Ate’s parentage at least half of it, and had a sick feeling she knew the other half as well. As an infant Ate had simply appeared. Sealed in her temple by Hades with a staff of childless women transplanted from the Elysian fields. Zeus had nearly started a godly war with Hades over that. With a nod at Enyo she flashed out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Asclepius had been enjoying a quiet lunch with his daughters when the goddess of Force appeared in their midst.

“You are now all officially prisoners of Aggression” Bia said without preamble. “Now get all your potion supplies quickly”

“Daddy?” Panacea asked wide eyed and frightened.

“It’s okay, girls. Gather up your potions and supplies” Asclepius told his daughters. “Who, what?”

“Ate, beaten, I’m assuming raped by the look of her. She’s not healing. Old wounds but not healing. Guessing the injuries a week or more old-- plan on a long stay”

Asclepius gaped in horror. “Who could---Ate is too powerful, who is strong enough---”

“Zeus, who else” Bia said tightly.

“You really think---”

“I know, child.” Bia snarled. She was a daughter of the Titans. Ancient, powerful. The upstart brat Zeus if possible was even more a tyrant than her Uncle Cronus. Asclepius hurried his daughters in the gathering of everything they might need and became the willing prisoner of the Houses of Aggression.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Clio stumbled several times. Nearly fell off the ladder twice. It had taken nearly four hours but every bit of prophecy that mentioned the God of Peace was now in front of Aphrodite.

Dite wanted to cry at the pile of scrolls as tall as she was. Gods, they didn’t have time to sort through all of this. If Peace had anything to do at all with the fall of Zeus, the Houses of Aggression were on borrowed time. The old Goat would move against them as soon as he figured out the Peace was now amongst them. She had Lyssa and Momos gathering everyone, getting them safely in the Court of Aggression, Ares would want that. Even if he couldn’t stand a few of them, he was the Head of Aggression and they were his responsibility. No hostages for Zeus if at all possible. Dite couldn’t begin to count the number of drills that Ares had insisted on over the centuries of what to do if anything happened to him, or if Zeus moved openly against them.

She stared hard at the trembling muse of History. Reaching out with the power of her godhood. Clio was very much in love with Anteros.

Dite swallowed. Unsure of the depths of Ter’s feelings but she couldn’t leave Clio unprotected, within Zeus’ ability to reach and use against them. “You are now officially a prisoner of Aggression Clio” Dite sighed. “Get your stuff together. I need you to go through these scrolls and make sense of them. I just don’t have time.”

“But---”

“Peace is here. Now.”

“On Olympus”

“No, but with Ares” Dite said, not wanting to tell Clio anymore than she had to just yet. The less Clio knew the safer she would be. “You have the prophecies and some clue as to what the Tartarus is in them. You’re not safe. Let’s go.”

Clio gasped. “Ares is going to try to dethrone Zeus”

Dite laughed, a harsh, bitter sound that unnerved Clio since it seemed so at odds with the happy, dizzy perception she had of the Goddess of Love and Beauty. “Ares doesn’t want Zeus’ throne or any thing at all of the old bastards. The prophecies actually say War takes out the King of the Gods”

Clio shook her head. “Only the Son of the Sky King”

“Okay, narrows it down to about a quarter of the pantheon and several dozen immortal demigods” Dite glared. “I can guarantee it won’t be Ares unless Zeus forces his hand and it’s self defense.”

Clio found herself shocked that she believed Aphrodite. Everyone who knew even the tiniest bit of the prophecies about the end of Zeus reign *knew* it had to be Ares that was the son of the sky king mentioned in the prophecies. No one had ever stopped to consider just how many sons Zeus had.



Julius stood ready to start arguing with his Aunt when she flashed back into the study. He didn’t get a chance to say a single word. “Watch the kids” she ordered and flashed out.

Vennie stared at Julius with terrified big eyes.

“Hims my brudder Julie” Bliss shrugged. “He’s okay for a Roman jerk--das what Aunt Enny and Aunt Harmie say he is.”

Vennie whispered something in Bliss’ ear.

“No he wont hurts us. An if he does my daddy‘ll send hims to bed with out supper, and Aunt Enny’d probably beat him up” Bliss said.

The little girl whispered to Bliss again.

Blonde head bobbed. “Pwomise” Bliss said solemn ly Then he shrugged with a grin “He’s only a demigod anyhow, if he scares you--zaps him in the butt like dis” Bliss “popped” behind Julius and sent a tiny energy ball at his brother’s rear end.

The strange dark haired little girl who looked disturbingly like a miniaturized Discord (switching leather for a long simple dress of navy blue cloth) made a couple huffs of sound that almost could be construed as amusement.

“G’ampa an’ G’ampa Hephy mades me a playground gots a slide and swings an’ ev’t’ing. Wanna go play?”

The slight quirk of the little girl--goddess Julius quickly surmised--must have meant yes as the pair disappeared before his very eyes.

He startled at the groaned “Mmmmm Clio”. Looking around the study he finally noticed the sleeping Anteros. None too gently plucking a scarlet feather from his Uncle’s wing.

“OWWWWW!!!!” Anteros bellowed awake and on his feet in a heart beat. “What was that for and just how did you get here”

“Bliss, took off for his playground. Where is it?”

“Gods, must be getting desperate if *you* got recruited for babysitting. I better see what’s going on”

Anteros waved his hand. The world spun, in the next instant a very nauseous Julius found himself standing in a huge hall with assorted odd equipment that Bliss was showing the odd little girl how to kill themselves on.

“Don’t jump on that!” Julius shouted as his little brother bounced seven feet into the air giggling.

“It’s twamp-leeen. S’posedter jumps on twamp-leeen” Bliss giggled. Bouncing up high again. Fluttering his wings enough to make a full flip in midair before landing again.

“If you clobber yourself, I’m not the one getting in trouble with Dad!” Julius shouted at Bliss. The little girl vanished before his eyes. “YEOWWWWWW!!” Julius shouted spinning around rubbing his stinging behind, to find the little girl behind him a mutinous expression on her face

“Don’ yell at Bliss. He’s jus’ liddle”

“And you’re all grown up” Julius snorted.

“I’m four!”

“Yeah, for a whole month you been four and I be four next week!” Bliss snorted not impressed by Vennie’s asserting of the supposedly big age difference.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Iphicles head was pounding. He truly didn’t know how much longer he could restrain himself from knocking a few teeth loose in the obnoxious Amazons mouth.

Three days. Three days since Jace had been taken. No word. No rumor. No return visits from his newly found out Olympian relatives. First thing this morning. Hercules. And that whining Amazon wench.

He loved his little brother. He really did. But would like him much more at the moment if he were on the other side of Greece.

“Sire” a messenger came into the dining hall bowing. “Urgent news”

“Come to my office, don’t want to interrupt your dinner with boring state details” Iphicles sighed. Hercules took it as his brother was upset and began frowning. Iphicles couldn’t be more relieved to get away from him.

“The Assassin Jett has been spotted with the Thief Autolycus entering the City’s south gate.”

“Go, invite them to the castle. Tell Jett it’s--it’s Family Business. That his grandmother paid me a visit, and I want to know how his father and my great grandfather are doing. And if he has any news of his brother, the middle one. And--tell them to be sneaky, my brother’s here. I just got the throne room repaired from Herc’s last visit”



Joxer settled the babies inside. Xena immediately left to find something for supper. Joxer didn’t bother to tell her about the enchantments on the cottage, he was all to happy to see her go for a little while. All three were changed in short order. Thankfully Cupid and Strife could now both hold their own bottles. The tired pair were snuggled into the large bed in Joxer’s room of the cottage. Joxer drug the strange rocking chair that his Grandmother and Jace both adored into his room as well and settled down to rock and feed Ares.

Muttering to himself Iolaus settled Argo in the shed behind the cottage for the night. And then set to unpacking the cart. Not so much annoyed with Joxer--after all the babies did need taken care of. Xena was the one aggravating him Argo w as her horse after all and not only did they have enough supplies for several meals there was also a fully stocked cupboard in the cottage.

{Jox, Iphicles wants to talk to us. Auto and I are going to see him sometime tonight. Herc’s there don’t want to deal with him}

{Okay, good, he might know something…anything}

{Yeah, how are they}

{Sleeping now} Joxer answered stroking Ares cheek with a finger. {War is supposed to start in the morning}

{You make it to the cabin}

{Yeah, bout an hour ago. We should be safe here for a while. Dad’s tooth finally cut through this evening Cupid managed to pull himself up to stand in the cart this afternoon, nearly went headfirst out of it}

{They’re growing} Jett’s voice came an odd combination of relieved and tense {Ares?}

{Not yet, but the war….he should have a major energy burst and growth spurt from it tomorrow…..but}

{It’s gonna be bigger than the blast that hit Cupe} Jett finished angrily.

{Jett, you can’t be mad at them Ares’ kids meant well…..}

{I ain’t mad at them. I’m mad a the old bastard. He’s going to be hunting all of you. You could be safe on Olympus Dad and Cupe and Ares wouldn’t have to have you trying to keep em alive….. How’s Xena doin?}

{Not well. She doesn’t like the thought of being a goddess and she’s still not happy about leaving Hercules and Gabrielle behind}

{Dumb cow does something stupid, I’m gonna skin her}

{She’s family Jett}

Joxer smiled at the snort he got in answer to that.

{Yeah, well so’s the old bastard} Jett retorted. {Auto says hi…..} Joxer grinned at the mental growl {And your supposed to give the babies a kiss for him}

Joxer laughed out loud. {I will. And tell Auto to keep you out of trouble}

{Yeah, right. Later, little bro}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jace was weaving on his feet as his surroundings came into focus. His grandmother had spent the day flashing them from place to place all over the countryside. It was safe to assume there was not a statue of Zeus left in Greece that did not have a big hole in it through the crotch. All of Zeus’ temples had been visited with some type of infestation. Fleas, wasps, huge biting flies, something. Jace had giggled at the pile of goat manure on every alter despite his, well, terror, over the whole situation.

Jace stared at the young woman lying on the bed. Black hair, what little bits of skin not bruised or split open he saw were very pale. Truly it was almost impossible to say what she looked like, she was quite literally beaten and broken nearly to a pulp. No mortal could possibly survive in the condition she was in--but Jace didn’t think he was looking at a mortal.

“He’s gonna pay for this. Momma promises you. He’s gonna pay for this.” Eris whispered hoarsely tears streaking down her cheeks. She leaned over, carefully placing a kiss on the battered goddesses hair line. “Momma’s going to make him pay, baby”

Eris tensed grabbed Jace’s hand, her grandson moaned as the world spun again and they disappeared.

~~~

“Aphrodite!” Hera snarled not at all appreciating the Hephaestian handcuff’s her stepdaughter/daughter-in-law had clamped on her. Dite had appeared in Hera’s temple. She and Illythia had overseen the very difficult birth of twins to one of Hera’s high priestesses. Hebe had been with them, pestering more than helping.

Dite had announced that Hera and Illythia were technically aligned with Love (which they were--though Hera refused to acknowledge that) and that Ares would want Hebe and Illy out of the line of fire anyway. The next thing she knew Hera was in Hephaestian handcuffs and in the Court of Aggression.

“APHRODITE I DEMAND----”

“Peace has officially joined the Pantheon Hera” Dite said tightly.

Hera paled.

“Who, how,”

“Joxer”

“WHO? What are you talking about”

“Joxer is Peace”

“*WHO* is Joxer?”

“One of the triplets”

“What triplets” Hera frowned.

“*Strife’s* triplets. Your great grandsons” Dite snapped.

Hera looked at Aphrodite in disbelief. “One of *Strife’s* children is Peace. The son of Mischief and Grandson of Discord is Peace?”

Dite simply glared in answer refusing to repeat herself.

“I want to talk to Ares”

“He can’t talk at the moment”

“He can so talk to me!” Hera snapped. “I’m his mother”

“One you damn well never bothered to act like it and two he *can’t* talk. He’s about 6 weeks old”

“WHAT!!!!!”

“Well, that wasn’t quite what I had in mind when I said I needed Hera here to get her opinion.” Asclepius said eyebrows raised at the sight of his Aunt dragging the Queen of Olympus behind her in handcuffs.

“Opinion--on what, and what are you doing here?”

“Bia took me and my girls prisoner” Asclepius shrugged. “And I need you to come in here and take a look at Ate”

“Ate?”

Dite snarled and drug Hera into the room where Ate lay. “DAMN! Rissy was here. I can feel the power signature HEPHY!!!!!!!!!”

Hephaestus appeared, a bit singed and still giggling.

“What in Tartarus…… Hephy, what happened to you?”

“Lachesis didn’t think Argo being the Goddess of War Beasts as funny as I did” Heph snickered. Then took in his surroundings. “Honey?”

“When Peace comes, the Sky King gets dethroned according to some of the prophecies. What I saw of them damn those seers are on serious drugs none of it makes a damn bit of sense. I took Clio prisoner and she’s looking over the prophecy scrolls. ‘Sides, if the old goat catches wind of Clio and Ter---

“What the blazes do you mean *Clio and Ter*” Hephaestus frowned.

He glanced at the bed frowning deeper. “Gods, is that Ate?”

“What little is left of her. Bliss and Vennie are in the play room with Julie”

“Julie? Cupid’s Julius” Heph frowned. “And Vennie is real?”


“Venom, Goddess of Spite, age 4, daughter of Ate” Dite sighed. “Argo--XENA”S ARGO?”

“She got caught in that energy surge” Heph nodded.

Hera scowled at Asclepius during Heph and Dite’s conversation, he undid the handcuffs. Hera paled as she reached out with her power searching for whatever Asclepius wanted her too look at.

Hera swallowed several times, afraid she was going to be ill.

“Mother?” Hephaestus asked worriedly.

“She’s pregnant.” Hera swallowed

“Zeus?” Dite snarled.

Hera shook her head. “Eryx is the father” tears streaked down Hera’s face. “But she’s Zeus’. Ate is Zeus’”

Heph nodded grimly.

“You---you *KNEW* what that bastard did! Eris was only 15!”

“Hello, lost here” Asclepius interjected, startling himself slightly. The attitude and sarcasm of the gods of Aggression seemed to be the catching kind. Hopefully Hera didn’t take offense, being a smart ass in the presence of the Queen of Olympus was hazardous to one’s health as a rule.

“Ate’s Rissy’s daughter.” Heph said tightly. “He nearly killed Riss when Ate was born, tried throwing Ate into the Void. Threatened Riss with killing Ate, Arry and me if she ever claimed Ate”

“She’s so weak. I’m worried she might lose the baby”

Hera shook her head “If she lives, the babe will, Eris has bonded with the child, giving it her energy so it doesn’t drain Ate.”

“Which brings us to why I called for you. I felt Rissy’s signature”

Hephaestus concentrated. Gave his wife a quick hard kiss and disappeared.

Hera looked at her broken and unconscious granddaughter and trembled with rage. How had that bastard managed to hide Eris’ pregnancy Ate’s birth from her? She’d never known--thought Strife Eris’ only child, only searching Ate’s, well, aura did she find out who Ate’s parents were. Dite’s accusations of never acting like a mother stung. But she’d done all she could---avoiding Ares, Eris and Hephaestus had made them safer, or so she had thought. Any time she’d shown the twins affection, Zeus had found some reason to hurt them. Hephaestus he’d just been an infant, only a week old, when Zeus took him from her. Thankfully he’d ignored Hebe and Illythia, she’d kept her two younger daughters practically tied to her skirts for centuries. Watched her sons and oldest daughter from afar--afraid if she went too close it would make things worse for them.

“Aphrodite, what exactly is going on? And what in Tartarus did you mean Ares is 6 weeks old?”

“I’ve got to keep moving. Ace can tell you a little. Sorry. Long story and we’ve got way too much going on------”

“HOLD IT APHRODITE!!!” Hades snarled appearing. “Where is Callisto? She disappeared from Tartarus and Kratos’ power signature was all over it. I can’t find Ares to demand an answer from him. You are second in charge of Aggression and I want some answers. And several Asphodelians have gone missing---the one’s allied with Aggression. Oh dear gods!”Hades gasped seeing Ate. “What has he done this time?"

“Aside from nearly killing Ate, nothing *yet*. But as soon as he gets done deflowering Athena’s virgins we’re screwed.” Dite sighed.

“Callisto?” Hades demanded.

“Is a member of Aggression. Ares responsibility. Even if he’d just as soon take the psycho apart piece by piece for killing Strife he’s not going to leave her where Zeus can get ahold of her. You know that.” Dite sighed. “I’ll send Harmonia over to explain this all.” and she disappeared in haze of wilting rose petals.



Hera was well and truly shaken. In the past hour she had learned more about her children from her young granddaughter than she had in the past millennia watching them on a scrying mirror whenever she thought it safe not to get caught by Zeus.

“But why take Asclepius and his daughters and Clio prisoner? Why not simply offer shelter to Clio and ask for Asclepius’ help.” Hera swallowed.

Hades snorted. “Considering he came to Asphodel and tried attacking *me* when I returned Strife to Ares. After Ares insisted I come up with some outrageous payment demand even. Zeus finds a way to hurt anyone that lifts a finger to help Ares, Riss, Heph and Dite. He put the four of them here in the court of Aggression made sure most of the Pantheon turned against them or at least too frightened to lift a finger to help them. Kids did good though , what Zeus intended their prison to keep them weak and isolated and away from prying eyes so he could torture them in peace became their sanctuary. They locked Zeus out rather than him locking them in.”

Hera considered those words. Zeus had put a few compulsions--Apollo Artemis and Athena primarily--ensuring their hatred of her children. Some of the pantheon automatically despised Ares because his wars sometimes interrupted their festivals, damaged temples and killed followers. Ares and Heph both singled out for the brunt of Zeus hatred and distrust, none would dare to befriend them all those centuries ago, frightened of Zeus. “If things go wrong, the rest of the pantheon would be up in arms if Zeus tried to punish someone for being Ares prisoner.”

Hades nodded. “I’ve got to go little one, before Demeter catches wind of me being here and raises all Tartarus since Sephie is back with her for the summer.”

“Aggression doesn’t forget their debts, we’ll grab Seph if it gets too bad and bring her here.” Hermaphroditus spoke up. “But for now I think she’s safer with Demeter.”

Harmonia nodded her agreement. “Zeus doesn’t pay attention to Seph, unless Demeter is harping about you getting her back here on the exact second Spring begins we’ll watch out for her though.”

Hades nodded. Kissed Harmonia’s cheek, “Visit soon, little one. Cerberus misses you” He disappeared in a swirl of black.

Hera blinked. “Whenever have you been to Asphodel?”

“All the time when I was littler, every time Hercules got stupid Daddy and Daddy Heph sent me to Hades to be kept out of the way”

Hebe who had been sitting quietly in the corner, frightened of her Uncle Hades spoke up hesitantly. “Hephaestus and Ares hate each other. Ares raped Aphrodite--several times”

Hermaphroditus laughed at his Aunt. A bitter sound. “Not hardly. Zeus put a compulsion on Mom. She literally goes berserk every so often with an insane need to have a child. Doesn’t want Love to have a happy marriage, even if he forced mom and Daddy Heph into the marriage. Heph tries to get her to Ares when it hits. Doesn’t always succeed but tries. Look at what happened with Eryx--Poseidon came and got him when he turned 200, refuses to let mom go see Ryx or let Ryx come visit mom.”

Harmonia added “Mom and Aunt Rissy are best friend

“That--that can’t be true” Hebe insisted. “Daddy would never…..”

“Hebe, your father most certainly would” Hera said through clenched teeth.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jett watched the castle. He waited a few moments after Hercules and Gabrielle left then nodded to Auto. The two of them made their way through the courtyard, avoiding all detection by the palace Guards.

~~~~~~~

Iphicles was pacing in his chambers. A report had come that Zeus temple had been desecrated, he wondered if Jett and Autolycus had had a hand in that. Didn’t really matter, it got Hercules out of his hair a bit off to see who would be so mean to his daddy’s temple. And it got that whining Amazon out of earshot! If he heard how Ares turned Xena evil then kidnapped Joxer, Xena and Iolaus one more time he was going to scream.

“We’re here”

Iphicles nearly jumped out of his skin, blinking at the two men now standing in front of his open window. He swallowed. Jett looked so much like Jace, it twisted the knife of worry in his heart.

Jett was very relieved at finding out Iphicles was Jace’s Mr. No-name. Not some slime ball warlord after an in with Ares. Not some jerk that was going to break his brother’s heart. Of course that didn’t stop Jett from telling Iphicles in great detail how many pieces he’d be broken into if he broke Jace’s heart.

Auto had always thought Iphicles was an okay guy. He was now very impressed at how the King of Corinth stood up to Jett’s threats. Not everyone could stand there and listen to how the King of Assassins would torture and kill them and then calmly offer to send a guard for supper and wine.

Iphicles grabbed Jett’s arm as the Thief and Assassin headed back out the window to leave. “Are you sure, Eris won’t hurt him?”


“I’m sure.” Jett nodded. “Just don’t know if she can protect herself let alone him at the moment”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“FATHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Hercules bellered for what had to be the millionth time in the last three days.

“What!” Zeus snapped appearing finally unable to continue to ignore his insistent child. He glanced around the temple “Who did this?”

“We think Discord” Gabrielle spoke up.

Zeus frowned. The blonde woman seemed slightly familiar. Ah, yes. She was the one Artemis was bent out of shape over. Ares putting his mark of protection on one of her Amazons. She was involved with one of Ares half-mortal brats. Zinna, Xeva, something like that. While they annoyed the shit out of him doing it--Zeus much preferred his children fighting. If they were busy fighting each other, they were to busy to overthrow him.

Zeus made the appropriate noises to placate his son. Sent him off to find Discord with a length of Hephaestian chains. Promising Ares would pay for this. Hercules was quite pleased when his father left. Zeus was in a rage however, careful not to let his son see. Heads were going to roll, preferably Ares for ruining a lovely week. Athena’s virgins regretfully forgotten and none virgins any longer anyway. Zeus had more important things to do. Like torture his Heir.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~









Joxer sighed as the first rays of dawn touched the window sill. He certainly hoped Gaia had managed to harness the power flow well enough. Strife began whimpering.

Joxer frowned picking up his father, feeling the energy. A burst of blue sparks and loud screeching yowl from Strife, and the 6 month old infant aged to about 12 or 13 months.

“You okay now dad?” Jox asked.

Strife giggled. The diaper he was wearing evidently couldn’t hold anymore--Strife, Joxer and a good chunk of the bedding slowly soaked while the toddler god of Mischief giggled.

“Hahaha, very funny Dad” Joxer sighed tiredly.

Joxer gently shifted Ares aside, still sleeping soundly, for which Joxer was grateful for.

“You two need a bath” Joxer frowned at the stripped down Strife and soggy Cupid, whose own diaper had started leaking. He tried to think if there was anything in the cottage that would work for a small bathtub for the pair.

“Whoa”

Joxer turned to the doorway and Iolaus who had nearly tripped over the miniature brass bathtub filled with steaming water and bubbles.

“Did I do that?” Joxer gaped at the tub.

Iolaus nodded. “You really are a god”

“This is going to take a *lot* of getting used to” Joxer said still staring at the tub of water.

“Uh, Jox, we got a problem.” Iolaus managed to tear his gaze from the tub, realization Joxer was really a god having a heard time sinking in. He *knew*, but seeing was another thing entirely.

“What?” Joxer said after the third time Iolaus repeated himself.

“Xena didn’t come back. You fell asleep with the babies, I musta fell asleep too. Argo woke me up. She was kicking on the front door. Xena’s gone.”

Ares woke up whimpering in terror yet again, as he had almost continuously through the night. Joxer was scared. Afraid something was wrong with the little war god.

~~~~~~~~~~

AARRREEEEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!” Zeus roared. Olympus’ very foundations trembled.

Zeus flashed to the Court of Aggression yet again. He’d visited several times during the night and had not been able to gain entrance. Hera’s block on the entrance as well as Ares’ and for some reason Bia and Kratos’ power signatures on that damnable enchantment as well.

“Allright boy, you want to be that way, lets see who’s out and about. You won’t answer when I call for you, mmmmm, those little girls of yours are growing up pretty. Maybe one of them will get your attention, you thankless brat!” Zeus shouted at the gates of the Court of Aggression.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joxer picked up Ares cradling the wailing and trembling infant tightly. “Shhh, Joxer’s got ya. You’re safe, Arry. S’okay, S’okay , sweetie”



Iolaus found himself roped into helping bathe the infants. Strife splashed bubbles in Cupid’s face. Cupid furious began to scream and flap his wings which got water and bubbles every where.

Ares began squirming and crying, Joxer felt the tingle of power building. A flash of blood red and black sparks Joxer found himself juggling not to drop the sturdy two year old he now held in place of the tiny infant. Joxer sent a heartfelt prayer of thanks to Gaia that the power fed growth spurts that had hit his father and Ares this morning were well controlled. He squeezed the little war god tightly, sensing the confusion and distress “It’s alright, Arry-honey, gonna be okay”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Gran, exactly what is this?” Jace asked picking up the roll of white stuff, some bizarre cross of cloth and parchment.

“Toilet paper, it’s a future thing, now c’mon, sweetie, help your old gran get this done”

With a shrug Jace began helping string the strange future toilet paper all through Zeus temple in Thrace. The unconscious priests in bizarre multicolored outfits with stripes and polka dots and huge puff balls, ruffled collars, strange frizzy multi colored wigs on their heads and red balls on their noses as well as bizarre applications of face paint and shoes that would probably fit a cyclops they were so large. Gran had said they wanted to act like clowns and serve the old goat, they should look the part.

The final touch was a goat in a clown suit with a sign around it’s neck that read “Zeus”.

Zeus-the-billy-goat was happily munching on some lower ribbons of toilet paper that were woven throughout the temple when Eris flashed herself and her grandson out.

Jace slowly getting used to the popping about actually didn’t feel sick this time. He was also adjusting to his grandmother’s manic bizarre new personality, and if he was completely honest enjoying the trashing of Zeus’ temples. He’d been a bit afraid when his gran had promised the battered goddess that she was going to get Zeus, he supposed that the current state of his temples would truly get to such an egomaniac as Zeus, and much more Jace’s style than chains and torture.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Gran!” Joxer gasped. “Jacey? You okay?”

Jace nodded {Fine}

“You guys are outta here.” Eris declared a wave of her hand Cupid’s wings were gone.

Joxer, Iolaus and the three babies disappeared before Jace’s eyes with a wave of his grandmother’s hand {JETT!!!!!!!! GRAN SENT JOXIE AND THE BABIES SOMEWHERE!!!!}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Jox?” Iolaus asked wide eyed.

“I-I don’t know, you recognize anything?”

Argo appeared with the cart hitched to her, all it’s unpacked contents seemed to be repacked into it at a glance. Joxer frowned, his grandmother in the state she was in actually thought to send Argo and the cart? He just didn’t think she had--so who had?



Clotho gaped in horror at the Tapestry. This was getting worse by the minute. But then these threads all originated in the Houses of Aggression. Aggression could be counted on for never simply accepting Fate but fighting tooth and nail and disrupting the natural order of things all the way.

Threads twisting here, there, disappearing, reappearing…changing entirely. Clotho was truly frightened. She’d never seen anything like this, the Tapestry so out of control. Lachesis was still trying to track down this strange new goddess that seemed to have sprung from thin air, Atropos was with Gaia and Tethys. The strain of channeling the war energy hard on Gaia, the sea-titaness and Atropos aiding as best they could by trying to at least partially cover Gaia’s normal duties. Not even mother earth’s power was limitless, and though necessary in the larger scheme wars scarred the land which in turn pained Gaia, though the ancient earth goddess was capable of seeing the larger scheme of things and had even dictated some of the events that needed to occur during this particular war.

Clotho was helpless to really do anything but watch the tapestry and wring her hands and mutter the occasional “oh no”, “oh dear” “Tartarus!” and “ohshitohshitohshit” with wide eyes as she waited to see how this would all turn out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Iolaus was surveying the Valley they were standing on a steep high hill overlooking. There was some sort of house in the distance. Knowing how Joxer squinted sometimes Iolaus doubted the younger man had seen it. Surely though if Discord sent them here this should be a safe enough place--the house someone friendly? Right? She seemed…..protective. As strange of a description as that might seem for Discord in Iolaus’ experience, she had seemed very protective. Then again he was with Herc when he encountered the now blinding-pink haired goddess in the past, and Discord and Herc hated each other almost as much as Ares and Herc did.

Joxer picked up the sling-like carrier from the cart and adjusted it, quickly settling the shaking Ares in to sit in it balanced on Joxer’s hip. Strife was oblivious to the change in location he was tussling with the now slightly younger Cupid and trying to blow raspberries on the skin between Cupid’s wings. Cupid was squirming, squealing and giggling, equally oblivious to the goings on.

Keeping tight hold on Ares Joxer scooped Strife up off Cupid on the ground and plunked the furious tot in the cart. Cupid equally outraged soon followed. Their complaints ended with a pair of lidded cups of ambrosia laced milk and a sweet cake for each, Joxer wasn’t quite sure about Cupid having one, he seemed a bit young for it but had immediately tried grabbing Strife’s away.

Joxer felt a bit bad. Seemed like all he did was hold Ares, but he could sense the contentment of Cupid and Strife the pair seemed to need nothing but each other. As long as they had the other within arms reach they were content and happy enough.

The tumult of emotions from Ares though…. They were extremely upsetting and confusing to Joxer. All the clumsy warrior could think of to make the now toddler Ares feel better was cuddling him, which didn’t quite seem to work.

Joxer offered a cup and sweet cake to Ares who seemed to hesitate taking it. “Aren’t you hungry?” Joxer asked again offering the sweet cake.

Ares nodded slowly, dark eyes wary and suspicious. He reached for the treat and started almost inhaling it.

“Slow down, sweetie, there’s more, don’t choke” Joxer chided gently pulling Ares hand from his mouth “You can have as much as you want. Just take it easy.”

Those wide dark eyes still wary and watchful but Ares slowed down eating.

In the end it was Argo who made the decision of which direction they would go. Walking off with the cart, Strife and Cupid in the direction of the house on the horizon.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Shit! The idiot!” Enyo snarled, watching Hercules make his way into the camp the side that was supposed to *lose*. This was only the second day of the battle. Controlling it was exhausting. Too many little details. It wasn’t a simple we need x-amount of casualties in this region to keep it stable. *No.* This had to be one of the most complicated disasters in four or five centuries!

“THAT STUPID MUSCLEBOUND IDIOT!!” Anteros bellowed, flashing in to where his sister was sitting reviewing the day’s accomplishments and the next day’s plans.

“What?” Enyo snapped sharply, her attention focused on the death roster. Damn it all! That one wasn’t supposed to be dead! How had he gotten his fool self killed? Someone was going to pay for this. He was one marked that was to live at all costs. Now she had to pay off Uncle Hades to get him back. The notation killed by Hercules made her clench her teeth. She was going to find away to exact Hades price from Hercules hide, eventually, it might take a few decades but the Jerk was already immortal and she had a *long* memory.

“He just stopped a woman from being captured.”

Enyo whimpered. “One of the marked ones I suppose”

“Oh yeah big time. Gaia, the Fates, hell even Hera wanted her captured because her husband is such a bastard…”

“Fuck it. Just get her and dump her into the lap of whoever she’s supposed to end up with and tell him Happy Birthday and take care of her or you’ll see to it dad cleans the floor with his ass”

“En, that’s not the way you go about--”

“I DON’T GIVE A SHIT!! DO IT!! I’M GOIN’ TA CHAT WITH UNCLE MUSCLES THE MORON!” Enyo screamed. Stress, exhaustion, worry and fear taking the toll on En’s normally hot-tempered disposition. She was starting to resemble Aunty E in berserker mode.

Anteros spent a full three hours trying to sort out away to stage a second attempt at capturing the woman that would land her with the man that the Fates declared would be the father of her child--a very important child, well not so much the kid as it’s descendants. And his mother said the guy this woman was supposed to be captured by was her soul-mate. And Hera just plain liked the woman and wanted her safe and happy. There was nothing he could come up with that wouldn’t set numerous other things out of balance, out of time and completely out of whack.

“Fuck it” Anteros snarled, sounding and looking very much like his father in that instant. He flashed out and did exactly as Enyo suggested--much to the complete wide-eyed terrified shock of the two mortals in question. Whoever didn’t like it could take it up with Hercules--he’s the one that screwed things up as usual.

Strife wouldn’t have stopped giggling for a month had he seen the looks on those two poor mortals faces.

Anteros winced at the thought of Strife. He hoped Strife, Cupe and their dad were okay…

He flashed himself back to Olympus; he had about 2 hours to rest until the battle reconvened at dawn. “Clio” he gasped finding his bed occupied.

“Your mom took me prisoner,” the Muse of history murmured tiredly. “This is where she put me”

Anteros shivered. Things were steadily going from bad to worse if his mother was gathering prisoners. He gathered Clio close, too tired to do anything else, slipped into a very uneasy sleep

~~~~~~~~~~~

“What are you doing here!” Enyo screamed at the Demi-god and the Bard entering the tent the two were sharing. Chivalrous Herc not wanting Gabrielle left “unprotected” in a camp of soldiers. Enyo gave a mental snort. Her sister had shit for taste. The war was only 2 days long so far. Soldiers hadn’t gotten bored with the camp followers yet, and she didn’t think even this lot were that dumb to want anything to do with the Amazon once she opened that squawking mouth. Course they could always club her one and knock her unconscious Enyo supposed. But her rabid preaching of piece they were more likely to kill her… which was pretty unlikely cause even these morons knew a protected of their god Ares instinctually. Which also pretty well cancelled out the first scenario as well.

“Who are you?”


“What are you trying to pull here, you moron?”

“I’m trying to stop a war and who are you?” Hercules snarled repeating Gabrielle’s question.

Enyo threw a fireball at his feet. “Are you really *that* stupid?” She waved her hand in front of herself. She was wearing leather--long black leather skirt, reached her ankles and slit up the sides to mid thigh. Black leather top, sleeveless and clinging but the high collar covered everything her father would object to be showing (yet the get up Xena ran around in was fine? And Enyo was nearly 70 years older) A metal studded belt around her waist had a sword hanging from it. Metal studded arm guards covered her arms wrist to elbow with a dagger strapped to her inner arm. And one strapped to her thigh as well, a peek of it here and there as the skirt moved. It was pretty damned obvious she was a War Goddess given her dress and appearing from thin air in dark purple and navy blue sparkles, and she looked just like her mother except that she was black haired and dark eyed. These two twits were well enough acquainted with the Olympian branch of the family that they should have enough brains to figure out who she was even if they couldn’t put a name to her

“Are you a god?” the little blonde wench sneered.

“I’m the fricken tooth fairy, what in Tartarus do you think!” Enyo choked in disbelief. “So help me if my sister wasn’t so -- Tartarus! She sure didn’t get her taste in women from dad! You are the stupidest bimbo I ever laid eyes on!”

“Your sister?” the dimwitted duo screeched in ear-splitting unison.

“Who is your sister?!” Hercules demanded.

“Xena. Ya know, Uncle Jerk, you’re even dumber than what dad made you out to be. I see it was another of his ‘the family isn’t really *that* bad fairy tales’ when he was describing you”

“You’re not going to get away with this!” Gabrielle screeched.

“She’s right whatever you’re up to--”

Enyo gaped a moment. These two couldn’t be reasoned with. They were so--oh Hades! She’d honestly thought that Strife’s stories were exaggerated. Overzealous and fed one-line of shit after another by Zeus was one thing…but this was true stupidity. None of the gods were stupid…insane, psychotic, drooling, raving, bug-eating lunatics that didn’t make a lick of sense, yes. Stupid, no. “I’m trying to talk to the two most thick-headed freaks I’ve ever seen. Do you have the slightest clue what you’re interfering with? The man you killed--”

“It was justifiable! He was attacking--”

“THIS IS A WAR YOU IDIOT! ONE DECREED BY ZEUS AND THE FATES! HE WAS SUPPOSED TO LIVE! SIT DOWN, SHUT UP, LISTEN, AND CATCH A CLUE!!”

“This war is none of my father’s doing and needs to be stopped”

Enyo’s hand burned painfully from the fireball clenched in her fist. But she couldn’t blast the dimwit, that would draw Zeus quicker than… “Did Zeus tell you to stop this war? DID HE?”

“Well, no but while we’re here--”

“What did Grandfather tell you to do then?”

“Find Discord--”

“Fine go hunt for Aunty E by Amphipolis”

“Aunty E? Who’s that?”

“Discord. Eris. DUH” Enyo glared at the blonde. She waved her hand and the two disappeared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“EWWWWWWWW!!!!!!” Gabrielle screeched.

Hercules raised his head out of the muck he’d landed sprawled face first in--the moon giving more than enough light to see that he was now staring eye to eye with a particularly irritated pig--boar actually, large irritated boar.

“Gabrielle, Run!”

The muck-covered blonde did. Hercules scrabbled to his feet, kicking the boar aside and followed her, managing to get almost out of the pen before the boar reached him again.

“Oww!” Hercules shouted at the boar bit into his calf, he managed to shake free and limped after Gabrielle.

“Ares and Discord are up to something and whoever that goddess was is in on it.” Gabrielle fumed.

Hercules grunted his agreement, trying to assess just how deep the bite went. He really was starting to wonder if Gabrielle ever shut up. And why would his father send him on a wild goose chase after Discord if there was a war going on that he should stop?

~~~~~~~~~~~

Xena retraced the path they’d taken the day before, covering all sign of a trail. She should have said something to Iolaus and Joxer she supposed, but….with luck they’d think she’d turned on them and perhaps go elsewhere? Or not stay there long at least. Zeus would eventually pick up on power signatures. Perhaps not Ares, or Cupid’s or Strife’s but Joxer’s… and her own. Two strange godly signatures would surely attract attention. Argo had seemed to agree with Xena’s plan, that sounded nuts but Xena couldn’t shake the feeling that Argo had understood and agreed.

She wasn’t good with children anyway. She’d be of more use near Corinth some instinct told her. So that was where she was going--to the territories north of Corinth…

She managed painstakingly to double check every possible sign of passage, taking her twice as long to return to the spot where they’d become gods nearly two days before.

She was exhausted. Corinth a day, day and a half away, and where she needed to go another two or three days hard ride beyond that.

Too bad no one had thought to teach them that materializing thing. Thinking herself to where she wanted to go would be…



~~~~~~~~~~~

“oog!” Enyo grunted painfully knocked to the floor by a sturdy tall body that appeared out of thin air.

“Uff” Xena gasped the air knocked out of her. She stared down at the girl she landed on. “Sorry”

“Oww!” Enyo complained. “Try and think clearer so you don’t kill anyone next time, kay, sis? What are you doing here?”

Xena blinked. “I’m not even sure what I did, or how”

Enyo laughed “You’re *really* going to fit in with the rest of us. You already sound like Strife and the twins”

“Uhm, who are you?”

“Enyo.”

Xena awkwardly got to her feet and helped Enyo up

“I take it you’re here to help and not be a pain in the ass like Uncle Jerk” more a threat than a question.

“Hercules is here?”

“Was…he shouldn’t have been able to get here as fast as he did. Zeus probably.” Enyo shrugged. More than once Strife had complained that there should be no way humanly possible for Hercules to always be showing up like he did, that Zeus had to some how move him around the countryside and gloss over his memories so he didn’t realize that he covered two or three days travel in a half day. Or woke up days from where he was supposed to be. It wouldn’t take much for Zeus to accomplish that… and it was the only logical explanation for Hercules *always* showing up to cause trouble. Xena didn’t half as much as Herc did.

“Where is he now?”


“Sent him and that blonde of yours to a pig sty near Amphipolis.”

“Pig sty?” Xena blinked.

Enyo nodded. “So you going to help or are you going to be a pain in the ass.”

“Help. How out of control are things? I mean when Ares lost his sword…I know Gaia is keeping the power surges from overwhelming him but is anyone actually--well, but is she actually controlling…”

Enyo sunk back to the ground groaning and covered her face with her hands “You would have to think of that wouldn’t you” she moaned.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Iphicles groaned. The pain in his head nearly blinding.

“You awake?” A curt irritated voice demanded.

“Maybe.” Iphicles muttered, opening his eyes. That was a mistake. The world was fuzzy and wavering in and out of focus. Depending on which direction the world swam in front of his eyes, there were anywhere between two and six Jetts glaring down at him and a like number of worried and weary Autolycuses. He shut his eyes, which calmed the nausea rising. “What happened?”

“We came back after we’d checked the city again, guard outside your door said dimwit came to see ya and when he left said you were resting and didn’t want disturbed for a couple days. The Jerk clocked you one. You been out for five days. And we’ve been stuck here waiting on your lame ass to wake up instead of trying to do something to get Jace and Gran found.” Jett snarled.

Iphicles vaguely remembered Hercules declaring he needed to rest more, and that Herc was going to make sure he did. He briefly considered banning his brother from Corinth. But all that would accomplish is the main gates being damaged, several guards injured, possibly killed, the castle at least needing refurnished if not major repairs. Not to mention a fair amount of damage to the city as well. Because, of course, it would be some evil plot of Ares rather than his big brother severely pissed off at him that he wasn’t allowed in Corinth.

It probably wasn’t much of a stretch that Herc could have accidentally killed him. Probably came close with the blow actually--a blow to the head that rendered one unconscious for five days and left you with a rather serious concussion upon waking, not exactly healthy or restful. He didn’t doubt that Herc had thought he was doing Iphicles a favor in all sincerity. That was the most disturbing thing of all. His brother truly meant well, but the blinders he had on when it came to reality…Iphicles shuddered.

“Who knows? How--”

“Exactly two of you personal guard--Jett and I been takin care of things from here” Autolycus reassured him.

Oh gods! Now wasn’t that a comforting and pleasant thought to wake up to? The King of Assassins and the King of Thieves secretly in charge of his city while he was unconscious. That was more horrifying than five days worth of work piled up. “Jacey?” Iphicles whispered hopefully.

“Ain’t heard nothing for four days of Jox either.” Jett hissed through clenched teeth. Stalking away from the bed to look out the window.

Auto’s worried gaze rested on Jett’s back. Iphicles struggled to bring the world into focus and watch the pair.

“Bar fights, petty feuds, brawls in the market place.” Auto said quietly. “All sorts of aggression is running rampant out of control. Asclepius has been down here a couple of times--he said yer brain was bleeding inside.”

Jett growled interrupting Auto’s rundown of events. Auto waited patiently a moment to see if his lover had anything resembling actual words to add, when it became apparent Jett wasn’t going to actually say anything Auto continued.

“Hermaphroditus and Harmonia have been down here every day. Harm’s been managing to keep the riots under control. No major damage to the city yet… Harm’s really getting a grip on her control.”

“Riots” Iphicles groaned weakly.

“Here, drink this” Jett snarled suddenly by the side of the bed with a mug of foul-smelling stuff. “Ace said so. Now drink it before I skin you for wasting my time!”

Iphicles drank it. Whatever it was, it was preferable to a pissed off Jett with godly powers. The potion cleared his head and eased the pain, momentarily at least. But the more details he got of what had been taking place, the stronger the headache returned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joxer jumped and caught Cupid’s foot. The toddler god of love giggled and tried to escape. Joxer was impressed as his feet were lifted about an inch off the ground. Cupid was a very strong and determined little boy. “Enough Cupie! Lunch time” Joxer declared.

“C’mere Coop!” Strife complained. “Can’ weech ya up dere”

Strife and Ares were growing faster than Cupid. Cupid was perhaps a year and a half, maybe slightly closer to two.

Strife was about the same size physically, but then Strife had been smallish as a kid. Only maybe an inch, two tops, taller than Cupe and definitely thinner, despite the endless quantities of food Strife seemed capable of eating. Joxer was guessing his dad was about three and a half now.

The pair were exhausting. Happy, mischievous, obnoxious, all around little stinkers.

Joxer caught sight of Ares sitting so still and quiet against a tree trunk. “Iolaus, why don’t you take these two little monsters on in.” Joxer suggested quietly.

Iolaus nodded sweeping a little boy under each arm. They squirmed and giggled. “Ee-wahs!” Cupid complained giggling his version of the hunter’s name. “Lemme go! Git you!” Strife snickered and then shouted “Tickle ‘tack, Coop” Iolaus managed not to drop the squirming little boys as they did their best to tickle his ribs, and didn’t do too bad of a job if the hunter’s choked snorts were any indication.

“What’s wrong, Arry?” Joxer asked softly, sitting down next to the now roughly six year old God of War. A silent, wary little boy with a mop full of black curls falling in shuttered dark eyes. Ares was growing more quickly than the other two, but that wasn’t all that surprising with a more-or-less full scale war in the works.

Joxer had yet to hear Ares speak. He was starting to worry perhaps something had gone wrong with Ares when he’d gotten “de-aged”. Joxer was actually thankful for the aspects of godliness that improved his mental shields. IF not he doubted he’d be able to stand let alone walk in Little Ares presence, the older he got the more pain radiated off the child. Pain, sheer terror, tangled webs of disgust and worthlessness…so much so that it was taxing even on the empath s godly shields.

Ares shook his head wrapping his arms around his knees more tightly and putting his head down.

“Little one, you’re breaking my heart” Joxer whispered sadly, softly stroking the godling’s black curls. “Please, won’t you talk to me?”

“He keeps calling. I can hear him.”

“He?” Joxer frowned.

“Zeus.” The name wrought with waves of terror that killed all appetite Joxer worked up playing with the other two.

“He won’t get to you here, sweetheart.” Joxer managed pulling the little boy onto his lap cuddling him tightly. “He can’t find you. I won’t let him.”

“Rissy, though, does he have her?”

“No, no, he doesn’t have Rissy. She’s with my brother Jace. Jace will watch out for her.” Joxer soothed. If Strife and Cupid were any indication, the only memories Ares presently had were up to the point of his current physical age, which would have Ares assuming she was little like he was.

“Somethin' not right” Ares whispered. “I can’t quite feel Rissy.”

“Because she’s hidden too. Only for a few weeks okay, then you and Rissy can be together again.”

“She okay?”

“She’s safe, Zeus doesn’t have her. She’s okay.” Joxer managed.

“Feels like her here, but not.” Ares murmured.

Joxer hugged the little one, “It feels like Rissy’s grown up signature.” Joxer said carefully. The house, the protections warding it, wherever in Tartarus they actually were (though Joxer was fairly certain it wasn’t Greece) all were strongly marked with Discord’s power signature.

“Rissy's same age as me.” the little boy murmured in confusion.

“I’m still not exactly sure what happened. But you accidentally got turned back little again Arry. And I’m taking care of you til you get big enough to be War again.”


“Don’ wanna be War.” Ares whispered. “Don’ wanna be bad.”

“Oh, sweetheart.” Joxer started rocking the little war god.

“Who are you exactly, Joxer?”

“I’m Eris’ grandson.” Joxer said gently, watching the little boy to see how he handled that.

“Rissy’s all growed up then?”

“Yeah. She’s all grown up.”

“Is Strife and Cupid supposed to be grown up too? Who are they?”

“Strife is my father. Eris’ son. Cupid is your oldest son.”

Ares took in the information with a frown. “That mean I got more kids?”

“Yes” Joxer smiled.

“This is confusing.”

“I know little one, don’t worry though, you’re growing fast. You’ll remember soon enough.”

“But if I’m supposed to be grown up--that means I’m already war. Already evil.”

“You’re not evil.” Joxer said firmly. “And I’ll not stand for you saying that.” he squeezed Ares tightly.

“*He* says I am.”

“He--Zeus said that” Joxer swallowed.

The slightest of nods against Joxer’s chest.

“Oh, sweetie, he’s wrong.” Joxer said firmly.

Ares didn’t say anything but huge dark eyes darted up to look at Joxer’s face, pain and disbelief as clear in them as the sharp emotions radiating off the little War God.

“He hates us.”

“Shh, I don’t. I like you.” Joxer cuddled the boy.

“Really?”

“Really!"

The Houses of Aggression assembled wearily in the
largest conference room in the Temple of War. Xena was
studying the group trying to keep sorted who was who..
Anteros and Enyo she'd spent most of the past few
days with and honestly surprised how well she got
along with her brother and sister. Harmonia was
sitting tiredly between Aphrodite and Hephaestus.
Bliss on Dite's lap and a very weary and bruised
Julius holding a sleeping Venom next to Dite.
Hermaphroditus sat on the other side of Heph with
Hermes next to him. Clio had parked herself on
Anteros lap. Deimos and Phobos, now finally awake but
still a little shaky sat just beyond Anteros. "The
Elders" sat on the other side of Enyo. Bia, Kratos and
their sister Nike. The group of Asphodelians aligned
with Agression were hanging back. Moros, Momos, Lyssa,
Lethe and the handfull of others hadn't been actively
contributing to the goings on in the mortal realm,
mostly keeping the barriers around the court of
aggression strengthened and channeling as much of the
energy swarming aggression as they could.

After five minutes in the company of her Aunt Hebe
Xena had nearly blown away an entire wall--had put a
good sized hole in it that Illythia had repaired.

Asclepius and his daughters were back along one wall
sitting quietly. All keeping sharp eyes on Ate who
was up and about much to the dismay of Asclepius
though the others mostly seemed to think that this was
absolutely normal, which had Asclepius muttering about
too many blows to the head damaging brain function in
all of them.

Nemesis arrived with Jett, Auto and Iphicles. The
whole of aggression was assembled. Even Callisto
bound gagged and chained to the wall. Well nearly the
whole of aggression.

Ares, Joxer, Cupid, Strife, Eris and Jace.

Athena made her appearance furious. "Aphrodite, you
do not have the authority--"

"Sit down, shut up and start listening" Enyo commanded
standing, quickly flanked by Nemesis and Xena.

Athena sat, shut up, and was soon nearly ill. She
wasn't the goddess of Wisdom for nothing, despite her
low-level war goddess standing that allied her with
War and Aggression. Zeus had demanded that there were
no split loyalties between the houses--for the sake of
confusion and votes. Those with overlapping godhoods
were given a choice of house. War or Intellect.
She'd chosen War for the sole reason that she might
consider Ares a barbaric idiot, and Agression filled
with Idiots, with a capital I--the Idiots in agression
kept their hands to themselves. Apollo didn't.

Athena was.well..in shock. The group of morons whom
she'd always figured had the combined intelligence of
one extremely stupid village idiot between them were
anything but stupid. Well, the twins--but they were
more scrambled than stupid there were flashes of
brilliance in the chaotic twisted minds the two
possessed.

Zeus had gone on a rampage the past four days.
Sabotaging the war near Corinth. Attacking anything
that was under the protection of the Houses of
Aggression. Athena debated internally for all of ten
minutes before coming to the conclusion she was
casting her lot with Aggression, and began arguing
counter-point to every plan Enyo and Xena formulated
for keeping the Corinth War under control.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Iolaus collapsed to the ground. Shaking his head as
now roughly six year old Strife and four year old
Cupid continued their game of --well something like
tag Iolaus supposed. Long minutes later he called out
"Come on you two, it's starting to get dark. Time to
clean up, eat and head for bed."

"Just a few more minutes" Strife whined.

Iolaus darted after the young godlings again now that
he had caught his breath and wrestled them back into
the cottage. Joxer wasn't back yet. That was
worrisome but he wasn't going to let on to the two
little ones.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joxer made his way through the woods, underbrush
clawing at his shins and ankles with little poky
sticks and nettles.

Ares was close.

His young uncle had disappeared that morning. Joxer
had spent the day trying to track Ares, who truly
didn't want to be found. Joxer strained his eyes in
the fading sunlight. Barely catching sight of the
cave from the direction the debilitating waves of
emotion were coming from.

Joxer finally got to the cave as the sun set. The red
glow surrounding Ares illuminating the cave as it
wracked the boy's body. The growth spurts, despite
Gaia's attempts to control them were hitting Ares the
hardest.

Joxer managed to conjure a fire, bread, cheese, skin
of water another of wine and a pair of bedrolls.
Startling himself as the things appeared. "I am never
going to get used to that" he muttered.

The second the glow had faded from Ares Joxer hurried
over cradling the boy's head in his lap getting him a
drink of water. "Shh, Arry, you're okay." Joxer
soothed.

Ares greedily drank down the water. Dark eyes wary.

"What--why are you afraid of me, sweetling" Joxer
frowned hurt and confused at the riot of emotions
rolling off Ares. This was a new fear. Joxer was
guessing Ares to be about now 13 with this latest
growth spurt. Awkward long limbs that didn't quite
fit, a face caught between the lean planes of adult
hood and childish softness.

Ares forced himself to relax. Reminding himself this
was Joxer. Joxer who had never been anything but nice
the past few days. Joxer who had rocked Strife most
of the night before when the little godling had been
haunted by nightmares. Joxer who managed to make
pretty good honeycakes and tickled Cupid.

"Sorry"

Joxer shook his head, pushing shaggy dark hair out of
Ares eyes, "Don't have to be sorry, sweetling, nothing
to be sorry for. Except running off. But don't
apologize for being afraid."

"Afraid is weak" Ares bit out. Lessons from Zeus
coming clearer in his mind. His stomach threatening
to rebel at them.

Joxer merely sighed, carding his fingers through Ares'
hair gently. "Zeus isn't here. I am. You are not
weak"

Ares reached tiredly for the water skin again. Not
weak? He couldn't even manage the waterskin on his
own. Never mind that the painful and unnatural growth
spurt had just ended. Ares wasn't sure why but his
were worse. Cupid and Strife managed to sleep through
their growth bursts. But they seemed to age only a
few weeks or months at a time, perhaps that was the
difference? Possibly just the nature of the energy?
Didn't really matter, Ares supposed.

Joxer was disappointed. Disappointed he'd run off.
Hurt that he was afraid. Zeus' calls and threats
raging through his mind.

"Shh" Joxer murmured.

Ares found himself awkwardly tucked into a bedroll, a
bit of bread and cheese pressed into his hand.
Joxer's lap for a pillow, the man sitting against the
cave's wall, gently rubbing Ares' shoulder and arm.
Calling him little one and sweetling. Promising he'd
watch over him. Telling him to sleep, rest.

Joxer smiled gently knowing to the second when Ares
had fallen asleep.

He blinked when Jace appeared in the cave staggering a
little with their grandmother in his arms.

"We need to stop Zeus"
"I thought I was supposed to be the dingbat" Aphrodite snorted glaring at Athena. "HELLO!"
"If we could get it through his thick skull--"

"And how would that work? He'd just go along with whatever and pick us off one by one if we oppose him flat out" Enyo snapped. "We'd have to have the whole Pantheon banded together or at least the majority and risk a damned war on Olympus! It's not that simple"
"Do you have any idea what that would do?" Hephaestus bellowed.
"You call yourself Wisdom!" Bia shouted outraged. "You stupid foolish child! When Cronus was overthrown it nearly destroyed the world! It did wipe out man once! Those of us that survived the war nearly lost our own existences due to the lack of worshipers! Cronus needed removed. And Zeus is nearing the point that the same can be said of him--look at the suffering on Earth now because of that fool's temper tantrum. Can you imagine what would happen to our people if we---AARRRRGH !" Bia broke off in a growl of rage and frustration seeing that nothing she could say was going to be heard by Athena.
"The Goddess of Victory stands with us" Athena cut in..
Nike gaped in utter disbelief a long moment. Unable to even begin to form protest, the cost of such a victory would be so horrendous. She, like her sister Bia, had seen the carnage of an Godly War once. More the fool she, she had thought Zeus could indeed save them. They had been united behind Zeus, who could charm better than most anyone when putting his mind to it. The gods were far from united on Olympus. Too many factions and agendas, too many rivalries and petty hatreds. Zeus, for all his failings, kept Olympus stable to an extent. Terror of his wrath kept things from spinning too far out of control with the sniping and backstabbing. With Zeus out of the way and no clear leader--chaos would reign in such a bloody way that it could not bear description. Life on earth would not just be destroyed...but WORLDS....UNIVERSES...such an uproar would spill to other pantheons. By all the gods that ever were, what Athena seemed to be proposing could never, ever happen. Nike would be forced to stand with Zeus, once again, no matter how much she hated to...and all of Aggression knew that. Some victories simply came at too high a price, and this would be one. Some sort of control must be kept, and there was no viable alternative to Zeus' at the moment. The only one strong enough was Ares, and well, that simply wouldn't work Zeus' had poisoned not only the Greek Pantheon but the majority of all the pantheons and mortals against Ares. Did this--know-it-all little upstart not think if they could have done what she was proposing that they would not have centuries ago?
"So a few mortals end up in Hades realm sooner than they might otherwise--so what?" Athena huffed. "The wisest course of action is--quite logically, I might add-- to end any threat by--"
"LOGIC" Phobos screeched wide eyed. Panicking, "you're gonna kill us all! SHE'S GONNA KILL US ALL! STOP HER MOM!"
"Oh shut up, you idiot" Athena glared at Phobos.

"DONT CALL MY BROTHER AN IDIOT!" Deimos shouted.
"Ooops" Xena said innocently as Athena went flying. "I'm sorry. I haven't gotten the hang of this god-thing yet. I thought you needed some sense knocked into you--but I didn't mean to do that"
Athena managed to extricate herself from the wall she'd been shoved halfway through head first by Xena's mental power, uncertain if she believed her niece or not.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Strife, eat your stew" Iolaus scolded, frowning at the jittery godling. "Be still and eat nicely."
Strife burst out laughing, twitching uncontrollably.

"What's so funny!" Cupid demanded.
"Thena! Thena through a wall" Strife fell out of his chair rolling on the floor. "Xena threw Thena through a wall!"
"Wow!" Cupid grinned madly. "My sister is cool!" Cupid and Strife both remembered Athena, they'd known her at the ages they were now physically. Xena they only knew from Joxer's stories. They’d been rather uncertain about Xena in Jox's stories--but throwing Athena through a wall apparently got whole hearted approval.
"Strife" Iolaus scolded.
"She did! Xena threw Thena through the wall, head first! She ended up penned in the wall with her head sticking out one side and her butt the other!" Strife somehow managed indignant through his snickers.
"Why would Xena throw Athena through a wall?" Iolaus asked doubtfully.
"Cause Thena's a big dumb poopyhead" Cupid pronounced.
Iolaus opened his mouth to correct Cupid--and Strife, because what one did the other copied in short order--about calling Goddesses big dumb poopyheads, and that people being thrown head first *through* a wall was not funny.
"Oh forget it." Iolaus muttered to themselves. Strife and Cupid were--*technically*--adult full gods, despite physical ages at the moment. Athena was a bit....pompous. And Xena did have a bit of a temper...He was exhausted. He just wanted these two fed and asleep. So he could get some rest. "Strife, get in your chair. Cupid it's not polite to call people big dumb poopy heads. Please Eat so you can go to bed!"
Godly children were 100 times more exhausting than normal children! Three hours later, Joxer still had not returned to the cottage with Ares but at least Cupid and Strife were asleep. Curled together with not a breath between them, blonde curls and spiky dark hair poking from the lumpy blankets all that could be seen...though since the lump that was the two snuggled up godlings wasn't moving or giggling it was safe to say they were asleep.
Iolaus collapsed into his own bed, bone tired and exhausted. On the verge of drifting off the second his head hit the pillow...He sat bolt upright. Strife had sensed what was going on through his godhood! STRIFE HAD SENSED WHAT WAS GOING ON! At least *something*!
With that realization, there was no way he was going to be able to sleep.
But there was also NO WAY IN TARTARUS that he was going to wake the boys up just now either. They were absolute nightmares when tired, and as fast as they'd gone to sleep when he'd *finally* gotten them into bed, they were exhausted. Arrrggh!
Where was Joxer! And Ares?
More to keep him awake.
Ugh.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"What are you plottin', you crafty old broad?" Autolycus leered at Hera. "You're givin me one helluva power zing"
Hera blinked.
"He's the new God of Intrigue and Trickery" Aphrodite offered in response to Hera's incredulous look. *Sooo* not a look for the regal queen of the gods. In less grim circumstances, Dite seriously doubted any of her kids would manage not to laugh themselves silly over such a look on Hera's face...shoot...Dite would be laughing along with them.
"Well, that takes care of one of the interesting surges a few days ago. Joxer is Peace, but there are still..."
"Retribution" Jett smirked.

"Strategy"

Hera blinked again.
"Helloo! She blasted Iron Pants through the wall?" Enyo snorted.
"Harmonia, didn't you explain all this to your grandmother?" Hephaestus frowned.
"Yeah, all that I knew. But I don't think all of it soaked in."
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Jace! Gran!" Joxer gasped
Ares groaned.
"Arry" Discord scrambled from Jace's arms to kneel beside her brother.

"He keeps yellin', Rissy"
"You're safe--he can't find you here"
{Jace?}
{She's been NUTS! She's gotta couple black streaks in her hair now though--so maybe she's gettin back to normal...please tell me that?}
{I have know Idea Jacey} Joxer frowned.
{Maybe the two of us--}
{Can reach--}
{{ JETT!!!!!}}
Jett nearly fell out of his seat at the conference table.
{Jacey, Jox? You guys okay? Gran, Dad? Cupe? Ares?}
{Gran's still psycho....there was a goddess we went to see she was a bloodied mess}
{Ate--she's, well she's Gran's daughter}
{Dad's about 6 now, and more trouble than all three of us combined were. Cupe's about 4. They're both okay...Arry's --Jett, Arry's a shaken mess...I don't know what. His growth spurts are so painful. Zeus is reaching him--cant find him but his threats are terrifying Arry} Joxer thought out in a jumbled rush as worried how long he and Jace were going to be able to keep the connection.
{Hera's up to something} Jett said {Not sure what but Auto's gettin off on it the way he keeps playing with my leg}
{HUH? WHA?}
{Auto's the god of Trickery and Intrigue. This is cool though. Hera's standing with Aggression. The old Goat seems to have done one helluva number on her too. She says she stayed away from Gran, Arry and Heph to keep Zeus' attention on her and not on them--not that that did a damn bit of good. Take it Gran's been the one giving me the zings to my godhood with her getting even bit}
{Uh, Jace?} Joxer prompted silently.
{Uh, yeah think so...Iphicles}
{He's here with us now. HE's okay. Worried about you. Mushy stuff I am not repeating and all that.}
{Tell Iph I love him too}
{Tell him yourself when you get yer ass home!}
{What's going on in Greece}
{The war by Corinth has gone to hell in a hand basket, things are goin haywire right and left and there's riots and wife beatin and kid beatin and well, like when Arry lost his sword}
{That might explain his growth spurts somewhat---that much enraged aggression} Joxer mused frowning.
{Where are ya, Jox?}

{Don't know. One of Gran’s safe places not in Greece. Jace is still globe hopping with Gran, or was. Don't know.}
~~~~~~~~~
"JACEY!! JOX!!!" Jett bellowed in outraged frustration, getting looks of curiosity from the rest of the gathered members (and "prisoners") of Aggression.
"Jett?" Auto asked cautiously.
"Connection broke. Gran musta grabbed Jace and went popping around the damn globe again" Jett threw a fire ball at the wall.
Hermaphroditus and Hermes fixed the resulting hole before the new God of Retribution spoke again.
"They're alright I guess. Ares is about 13. Dad's about six and Cupe about 4."
~~~~~~~~~
Hera had made Aphrodite's order for Athena to go sit and listen to Harmonia, Deimos and Phobos on just why they couldn't up and get rid of Zeus and "solve" everything that way.
Harmonia had muttered it wouldn't do much good. With Aggression not having her Dad Cupid Eris and Strife too much energy was unbound. Which had Athena's annoying know-it-all streak backed up with her War Goddess nature kicking in more than it usually does.
However, with it being an order from the Queen of the Gods and the Acting Head of the Houses of Aggression there wasn't a way out of it.
Harmonia muttered, "Gods give me strength" when Hebe opted to join them as well.
Athena was furious. How a child and Deimos and Phobos were going to explain anything to her was--well. This was an outrage. She’d much rather know what was going on in the other room. Granted Aggression weren't the idiots she thought they were, but she was still the Goddess of Wisdom!
"You sooo owe me for this, mom" Harmonia muttered. "If it ain’t a scientific fact she can put on a scroll or some artsyfartsy crap Theen don't get it. Common sense is beyond her"
Dite agreed she owed Harmonia and shoved her children, and half-sisters out the door. Dei and Pho were more of a distraction to any sort of planning than an asset. Harmonia was a worrier just like her father, and still drained-to-the bone exhausted from full godhood and learning to control it. Dite didn't want Harmonia worrying herself to further exhaustion over what Hera had up her sleeve. Athena she just wanted out. Hebe and her sweet cluelessness leaving as well was an added bonus.
Aggression had serious planning to do. Hera's idea just might be the ticket, judging by the obvious power zings Auto and Xena were getting....
~~~~~~~~~~~



Joxer was glad to see the cottage in the early morning sun, just
barely up. He wondered if Iolaus and the boys were up. Maybe Strife
and Cupid's antics would lighten Ares mood a little.

Heartbreak and sheer mental agony had joined the cacophony of painful
emotions radiating off the boy- War God since Eris and Jace's visit
the night before. So off-kilter by the emotions he was picking up
from Ares, and still reeling from the chaos his grandmother had
emitted during her whirlwind visit, Joxer had yet to process any of
what he had learned from Jace and Jett. At least everyone was still
okay, he knew that much. That was something.

~~~~~~~~~~

"JOXER!!" a harried Iolaus shouted, relieved to see his
friend. "Thank the gods" he rushed over and hugged Joxer "Help!" he
whimpered

Cupid looked up grinning. "Are ya's gonna gits nekkid and wrestle
around?"

Joxer's jaw dropped.

Iolaus made a string of incoherent spluttering choking sounds.

"Think ya broke Yoluss, Cupe" Strife snickered. "An' who'd wanna
wrestle round nekkid any way? Could get things poked or scratched er
somethin'!"

"Dunno. But dis guy dat looks like Jox only kinda mean, an' dis
ot'er guy aminds me of Hermie...dey was nekkid and wrestlin ands a
moanin and groanin all night in my head! Looked weird to me but they
seemed to be having fun. Lots and lotsa fun. Gave me lotsa energies
dis mornin. I'm bigger now. Yolaus t'inks I'm five!" Cupid babbled
bouncing in place, acting more than a little like Strife on a sugar
high. "What's fuck mean? Dey was shoutin that a lot when they were
wrestlin. Is nekkid wrestlin called fuck?"

"How come yer so red, Arry?" Strife asked the blushing, wide eyed,
thirteen year old War God.

"Yoluss, you broked? Don' t'ink I'se supposedta break mortals."
Cupid frowned. "Why was th' Meanlookin Joxer guy sayin the guy that
reminded me of Unca Hermie was horny"

"Did he have horns?" Strife asked eagerly. Then accused, "You din't
say nuffin' bout somebody wit' horns when ya were tellin me this
before. Horns are cool."

"No no horns but the one kept sayin th' other was a horny fucker las'
night--but he didn't have no horns. Really weird."

"Think mebbe my monster should have horns?" Strife frowned at the
scroll of parchment he was drawing on.

"Yeah!" Cupid agreed eagerly.

"Strife and evidently Cupid now are--sensing things through their
godhoods. Xena threw Athena through a wall according to Strife"
Iolaus said weakly.

"Less disturbing than naked wrestling" Joxer managed, just barely.

"Yeah" Iolaus agreed.

"Why you so red, Arry?" Strife asked again, glancing up from his in-
depth conversation with Cupid on how big of horns their monsters
should have.

A short while later a still stunned Iolaus and Joxer were thrown for
a loop once again. Strife proudly held up a scribbled circle with
stick arms and legs and a multitude of stick horns on it's head. "I
drew me a horny fucka"

"Strife!" Iolaus squawked.

"You can't say fuck or fucker til you're grown up, Dad" Joxer
scolded, visibly wincing at saying the words to the kids..but
knowing "don't say that" would be met with repeated questions of
*which* words they weren't supposed to say until it was clearly
specified...Joxer knew his dad. At any age that was a pure Strife
sort of thing to do just to irritate and embarrass.

"I' is growed up if I'm you're dad. Ain't I? How'd I get to be a dad
anyway? I don't likes girl. They got cooties"

"You used to be grown up, but you're not anymore and you can't say
those words until you're grown up again." Joxer managed.

Strife pouted.

"Meanie! You made Strifey sad!" Cupid glared at Joxer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was well after dawn now, the entire night had been spent going
round and round and round. Harmonia was just about at the end of her
rope as she went over the reality of what would happen if they tried
to remove Zeus from the throne--*again*.

"But--any one with any sort of intelligence can clearly see Zeus is
unfit..."

Harmonia counted to 10, first in Greek, then Latin, then Egyptian.
Then just gave up and screamed. "WHEN IN THE PITS OF TARTARUS DOES
ANYONE IN THIS FAMILY USE THEIR BRAINS!!!! LOGIC BE DAMNED!! LOGIC
IS GOING TO LAST ABOUT TWO SECONDS THEN ITS OUT THE FRIGGIN WINDOW!!!
WHEN THE *FUCK* IS ANYONE LOGICAL BUT YOU!!!!"

A dawning look of horror slowly crept over Athena's features as she
realized while Ares was the logical choice to take the power of the
King of the Gods, he was the strongest...truly the only one capable
of controlling that much energy without it overwhelming him--and by
extension the rest of them. Logic would be overruled quickly. After
all Harmonia had it right. Apollo wouldn't think logically if Ares
became king of the gods. Apollo was the oldest of all Zeus'
sons...and better liked than Ares--even if Apollo was a pervert.
Apollo wasn't strong enough to control the Kingship of Olympus,
though that would never stop him from trying for it with Zeus out of
the way. Apollo was far more popular than Ares...It would be--beyond
a bloodbath, on earth and on Olympus. Even if Ares held the Crown of
Olympus when it was all said and done, the chances of there even
being an Olympus left, let alone an Earth, were beyond infinitesimal.

"I think she's gettin it" Deimos muttered.

"ABOUT FREAKING TIME!!" Harmonia shouted.

Hebe cringed in her seat and whimpered. "You shouldn't shout! And
say such bad words"

"Oh grow up, or at least grow a damn spine" Harmonia snarled at her
aunt. "Are you *sure* you're not adopted?"

Hebe burst into tears.

Athena awkwardly hugged her half-sister and tried comforting her.

"I've got riots to stop!" Harmonia snapped. "Keep Thena here til Mom
or Grandma Hera say otherwise" she ordered the Twins and flashed out.

Hebe screamed as Deimos shrugged and chains materialized from the
floor and began snaking around her and Athena.

Phobos cackled. "Oh yeah! That feels sooo good, Dei! She's
TERRIFIED!"

They weren't....oh Tartarus, they were! Athena was very glad she
hadn't eaten breakfast yet. She would have promptly lost it at the
violent floor show her nephews were giving her and Hebe. Their godly
natures of Pain and Panic clearly evidencing in the brutal twisted
joining.

Those two were just *Sick*

Thank Olympus! Hebe fainted. Athena didn't know if she could have
coped with the images running through her head at what would happen
if Zeus was deposed--the images of her nephews fornicating in front
of her *and* Hebe's hysterics.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Amphipolis was in the middle of one of the worst riots in it's
history when Harmonia tiredly appeared, leaning heavily on
Hermaphroditus who had been using most of his own energy to transport
them about.

Harmonia nearly whimpered when she saw the big sandy haired man that
just *glowed* with Zeus' protection stamp. Really, could the old
goat have made him any bigger of a target with that outrageous of a
stamp of "protection"? A flashing neon sign that said "Vulnerable
mortal/immortal Demi-god here" would have been less obnoxious than
the protection mark on this man. Tartarus it wasn't so much a
protection mark as an ownership Mark. The geis of not being killed
by the Greek Pantheon visible, and the immortality already gifted
him. But there was not one protection weaving around him. Just a
big old bright ownership claim that made it clear--want to annoy
Zeus, easy target to do so right here.

The yipping blonde woman with him had Ares personal mark of
protection. One usually slipped on wives of his favorite warlords.
Spell after spell woven carefully and subtle around the whiny woman.
Ares might be the first in line to torture the blonde Amazon to
Asphodel the second his ex-mortal daughter was done with her, but he
was going to do his best that nothing came to harm her seriously
before then.

Harmonia began crying, Hercules just killed a man--one that had a
mark on him left by the fates. For some reason or another that
particular scumbag had to live a very, very, *very* long time.
Exhaustion catching up with the young goddess overwhelmed by the
whole mess.

"Aw, Shit! THANATOS wait a minute" Hermaphroditus shouted as he saw
Thanatos arriving to collect the dead.

Hermaphroditus glanced at his exhausted, sobbing baby sister and the
two idiots. With a burst of power, he sent them to his secret hide
away...All the gods had them, a little cave or cottage tucked away
and heavily warded that none of the others of the pantheon could find
or get to--without owners permission. Harmonia needed to rest...and
those other two needed stopped before they could do more damage.




~~~~~~~~~~~

Ares had managed to escape the cottage and the two younger gods. He
was sitting against a tree by the small stream near the cottage.
From where he sat he could see Iolaus and Joxer chasing the pair of 5
or 6 year olds around the large grassy area in front of the
cottage.

Joxer had thought up some swings and a teeter-totter, as well as
balls and a few other odd looking toys. Not very well done, but Ares
didn't think it was too bad at all...since Joxer had told him how he
became a god, less than two weeks ago and no one had taught him how
to use his power yet.

{**ARES!! ANSWER ME**} the mental bellow of Zeus tore through Ares.

Joxer said not to answer. That everyone was safe. Ares couldn't
help them by answering Zeus. It was far too dangerous for him to do
so still being a kid. Rissy had said the same thing the night before.

Joxer *promised* everyone was okay--though Ares wasn't quite sure who
everyone was. Ares believed Joxer. Joxer was so....

Ares didn't know what it was. He really didn't. Joxer made him feel
peaceful.

At the moment, Ares was anything but peaceful, bracing himself
against the barrage of mental abuse being hurled at him by Zeus. He
watched a bit enviously as the others played.

He was War. Playing and happiness was not for him. Even when he'd
been younger (a few days a go) he'd known that. He was War. Evil.
Hated. Reviled.

He could sense the Aggression, wholly unchecked, and running rampant
through Greece. He feel the little energy *pings* of the brawls and
pillaging and not a few killings, riots and looting.

He could sense others trying to grab hold of the energy and contain
it. Didn't they realize how quickly rage and hate fed itself and
grew? Yeah, they did....that's why they were trying, desperately and
with only minimal success to control the unchecked Chaos. Chaos that
was being fed further by Zeus, at least indirectly.

It fell to the King of the Gods to redirect unchecked energy, to see
to it balance was kept when a god was incapacitated or killed.

That wasn't happening at all. Ares didn't have to be told that. And
somehow Ares was quite sure he was going to suffer greatly for
this...return to childhood.

"Hey, you okay?" Joxer asked sitting down next to Ares.

Ares was startled. He glanced over at the yard...Cupid and Strife
were splashing in the little wading pool Joxer had thought up. It
was a really weird non-shape. More circular than not but really
wobbly and misshapen.

Ares shrugged.

Joxer sighed.

"Why don't you hate me?" Ares could have bit his tongue off for
that. The words had tumbled out by the burning curiosity. Joxer
truly seemed to *like* him. That simply wasn't possible.

Joxer blinked. "Why would I hate you?"

"I'm War. I'm--"

"Don't you dare say you're evil again" Joxer said firmly

Ares nodded dropping his eyes. Joxer's version of Authoritative
was...comical. Joxer was simply too eager, sweet and clumsy to pull
off Authoritative. Ares didn't want to upset the man, though, so
left it unsaid.

"Oh, Arry, sweetheart, what am I going to do with you" Joxer sighed.

~~~~~~~~

"Hera? Persephone?"

"Hello, Amphytrite," the Queen of Olympus smiled wearily at the
Queen of Atlantis. The Queen of the Underworld smiled shyly offering
her own greeting.

Amphytrite was confused. "Poseidon is--"

"Occupied because Zeus is neglecting his duty" Hera
muttered. "Nothing new there. Aggression has gotten quite out of
control and now even effecting some of the younger gods. Deimos and
Phobos nearly ripped each other to shreds earlier. However there's a
little clause in the laws of Olympus, Atlantis and the Underworld
that Grandmother Gaia slipped in..."

Amphytrite's deep blue eyes narrowed, "Whatever you are planning,
Hera, I want no part of it." Giving a silent alarm for help.

"Mother?"

"Am?"

Hera looked to where the voices came almost in unison. There in the
doorway behind her stood Amphytrite and Poseidon's son Triton, Heir
of Atlantis, an imposing and handsome young god with deep green eyes
and black-green hair. Next to him stood young Eryx, Aphrodite's son
by Poseidon.

"Your mother sends her love, Eryx." Hera smiled. "As does your
daughter."

"My--"

"Venom," Hera frowned. "Blast! Ate managed to hide her even from you,
didn't she? Time enough for that later...your daughter is adorable,
though she does have a wicked sense of humor, truly wicked. To be
expected though she is the Goddess of Spite. And you will be a
father again soon enough."

Eryx stood shocked and weaving slightly on his feet.

Triton put a steadying hand on his younger brother's shoulder and
glared at his Aunt. "Whatever trouble you are plotting, Aunt Hera,
Atlantis wants no part of it. We have no use for the ridiculous
squabbles of Olympus"

Poseidon flashed in. "My son speaks true, sister. Take your trouble
making and leave. Persephone, has your mother twisted you so? Hades
is utterly devoted to you..."

"Mother has no clue I'm here, Uncle 'Don" Persephone said
tightly. "My husband sent me, with his full blessings. Zeus is too
busy having a temper tantrum and Aggression is out of control. It's
affecting everything. The Underworld is near over run at the moment,
great hordes of souls waiting to be judged. Charon is exhausted
going back and forth across the Styx non stop. The Fates have taken
to leaving their loom and giving straight sentences of orders of who
must be returned to the realm of the living. Animal attacks,
warlords out of control, riots and looting...even some severe storms
out of control Gaia is exhausting herself trying to control most of
the Aggression."

"Ares, Eris, Cupid and Strife have been temporarily rendered unable
to do their jobs." Hera said coolly

"And the four of them take on most of the energy of Aggression"
Poseidon finished. "How?"

Hera sighed. "Harmonia, Enyo, Deimos, Phobos, and Anteros tried to
make an anti-depressant potion for Cupid. Eris accidentally got
ahold of it. She turned Ares, Cupid and Strife into infants and has
been going about Greece vandalizing Zeus' temples"

Poseidon blinked. "Only on Olympus" he snorted. "Still, that should
not be causing the havoc it is. Zeus merely needs to redirect the
energy, he has the ability as King of Olympus. I do the same here if
need be." Gods did become injured after all, not often but it
happened, and the younger gods did get overwhelmed from time to
time. Even the elder gods could exhaust too much energy and need to
retreat into non-solid form and recuperate for a few weeks. There
were safeguards in place, it should be a matter of course simply to
enact them. This shouldn't be the disaster it was.

"Dad--uh, it doesn't work that way up there" Eryx shook his
head. "Grandpa's an ass. He likes to sit back and watch the sparks
fly, especially when everyone will be pissed at Uncle Arry. Why are
you looking at me like that, Aunt Hera? Helllooo! Born in the Court
of Aggression here! I might be Atlantean but my brothers and sisters
and mom are all Love and War"

"I want to Invoke the Regency of the Queens for One full moon cycle."
Hera looked at Poseidon. "I'm taking the right. Hades has already
given Persephone his blessings, he's simply too overwhelmed with the
Chaos that this silly mistake is causing in the Underworld. The
Regency leaves him completely free to sort out the mess down there
with the others and Persephone will take his place on the Council of
the Twelve and the Kings Council--or rather for the next Month, the
Queens Council"

"Aunt Seph?" Eryx demanded

"She's on the level." Persephone said bluntly. The usually quiet
Goddess of Spring wasn't quite as shy as most perceived. She simply
stayed quiet and hung in the shadows as much as possible to avoid her
harridan of a mother's notice. It used to be she'd been terrified of
most of the Olympians--thanks to her mother's spite and frightening
stories. In particular Ares and the rest of the House of War. It
wasn't until after her marriage to Hades that she had gotten to know
any of those in War or Love (who were disparaged as whorish mindless
gossips and fools by Demeter). "Aggression is in Siege Mode. Clio,
Asclepius and his daughters are officially 'prisoners' and even
Athena has caught the clue wagon. If there was anyone to spare to
watch them in Asphodel, Bliss and Vennie would be down there but as
it is Aggression is the better place at the moment. Cupid's son
Julius has been recruited to watch them."

Eryx looked steadily at his father and nodded.

Poseidon frowned studying his sister and niece. That Hera was
willingly working with Persephone spoke volumes. Not only was
Persephone one of Zeus' multitude of offspring, she was also Hades'
wife. If Hera had ever been given the choice it would be she that
was Queen of Asphodel.

Poseidon trusted his son's judgment. Eryx believed this was on the
level nor could he sense any compulsion on Persephone. Amphytrite
was a good wife, and a good queen. She above all was a fair woman.
She had accepted Eryx into her home without question--though it did
help that she had known of the compulsion years before Eryx's
conception, and she was quite fond of Aphrodite who had spent her
earliest years in Atlantis. No one, god or mortal, could resist the
Goddess of Love when she was using the full power of her godhood,
half mad with the need to fulfill the compulsion to conceive a
child. Amphytrite and Aphrodite had been close when Dite was just a
girl Amphytrite helping her mother Tethys with Dite when Dione
abandoned the child.

Eryx's conception Amphytrite laid soundly at the door of Zeus' temple
and never once held it against her husband, niece or stepson.
Poseidon trusted his wife to watch out for the well being of
Atlantis. Hera was going to do whatever she had plotted one way or
another, and Poseidon was simply to busy to deal with his sister and
Olympian plots. The Seas were chaos with the unchanneled
aggression. Sea creatures and fish maddened and attacking. The
nymphs and mermaids were hair pulling and trying to gouge eyes.
Numerous sea battles--none which Ares had had a hand in. The Cracken
had nearly escaped it's bonds more than once.

"Amphytrite, are you willing to do this?"

"Of course" she said firmly. Her husband, her children, her kingdom
were being threatened. Granted the younglings of Aggression had well
and truly made a muck of things with their good intentions, proving
yet again the truth of the saying the road to Tartarus is paved with
good intentions. All could have been avoided though if Zeus actually
was a proper king instead of a petty, brattish tyrant. It was not
the first time that Atlantis had been threatened by overspill of
Olympian squabbles. Likely not the last either. Curse it all
though, she was well and truly sick of Zeus' tyranny harming what was
hers, including Aphrodite whom Amphytrite loved as a daughter. Her
mother had brought the newborn Dite to Amphytrite to care for
alongside then only months old Triton.

"You are my regent for the next cycle of the moon and take my place
to the Council of the Twelve and the Council of the Kings."

Amphytrite bowed formally.

The Queens of Olympus, Atlantis and Asphodel flashed out. Poseidon
allowed himself a momentary smirk. Zeus wasn't going to find the
results of this at all pleasant, he was sure.

Crap, the Cracken just broke his chains. He glanced at his sons
seeing they had sensed the same thing the King of the Sea Gods and
his sons flashed out to contain the monster before he managed to
surface in the mortal realm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Clotho gaped at the loom. Bright purple flashes of light followed by
others that defied color being put to them--no color and all colors
at once--tore across the Tapestry of Life.

More threads appearing disappearing and reappearing elsewhere. Knots
and tangles and the pattern...chaos!

"Tartarus!" Clotho muttered. "What are those lunatics doing now!"



tbc

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