1 The Fall of Olympus

It was as the fates had told.

A child of Zeus would usurp the throne and force the gods into submission. But that child was not who they suspected. They say the fates saw the fall of Olympus at the hands of Athena, but only they themselves know the truth.

Olympus fell.

And there was no warrior goddess to protect it.

When war began, destroying the perfect world the Olympians had painstakingly created, the great gods of Greece looked for a scapegoat. Someone to blame for all their suffering. Someone to punish for their mistakes.

They all turned to Athena.

They all turned to the one said to bring the downfall of the world.

They all turned to the one who had done nothing wrong.

On the day Olympus crumbled, only two gods remained. One who watched as her home burned. One who smiled at his success. Two gods so different, yet so much the same. Two gods of war. Yet one strove to stop it, while the other sought to start it.

Ares and Athena.

Blinded by victory and pride, Ares released Athena from her prison in the depths of Tartarus. He showed her the dying paradise that was once the home of the gods. He showed her the magical spear crafted by the Cyclopes, creatures with only one eye, capable of killing even Zeus himself.

But that was his fatal mistake.

To show your greatest enemy your greatest weapon, is to show her your greatest weakness. With a cry that shook the heavens, Athena ripped the spear from Ares' hands, and stabbed the blade through his body.

Perhaps that is karma.

With the rest of the Olympian gods gone, there was no hope for the revival of Olympus. Even Hades had succumbed to the fate of the others.

Death.

But maybe, just maybe, there was a way to save Olympus. And so, Athena ventured into the deep, cold, darkness of the Underworld. There was no ferryman, no Charon, to take her across the resentful, black waters of the Styx. There was no guard dog, no Cerberus, to keep the dead with the dead and the living with the living. There was no god, no Hades, to reign over the land of darkness and death from the Underworld castle. There was nobody, no sound, except for the clanging of the Cyclopes' hammers on steel. There were no groans from Sisyphus, as he pushed his boulder up his hill. There were no sounds of water sloshing, nor was there any rusting of branches when Tantalus, the condemned king, reached for food and drink. The Underworld was surprisingly empty.

Athena entered the throne room of the dark castle. The room was deserted. There was nothing in the room except-

A mysterious altar.

Athena brushed the edge of the object with her hand. Suddenly, the altar glowed and shone with the light of a sour, green flame. With a grand flourish, Hades appeared amongst the flames.

"Hello, Athena, daughter of Zeus and Metis."

Athena jumped with joy.

"Hades! You're alive! There's hope-"

"Unfortunately, I'm afraid that by the time you see this message, I will have been killed by Ares."

Athena drooped. All hope was lost after all. 

"He possesses a weapon crafted by the Cyclopes. Made similar to the one they made for me and my brothers during the war with the Titans. His spear is called the Soulslayer. It's fueled by the rage the wielder feels when using it. Once fatally wounded by the Soulslayer, any being's soul, be it immortal or mortal, will be annihilated and cease to exist."

"That means they can't reincarnate!" Athena cried, in despair.

"Correct. I knew you would understand. In order for these 'dispersed' souls to reincarnate, you must gather the soul shards to reform the original soul. I have created a magical object that can do this for you. I call it the Pathfinder. It collects the shattered souls the Soulslayer destroys, and returns them to their original forms. In order to begin the reincarnation of these souls, there are two options. The first one is to use a strand of divinity to activate this altar, effectively sending the souls it has collected through to the mortal world. But I'm sure you will choose the second option. After all, you would never be able to live with the guilt of having been unable to save the rest of us. Thus, the second option is to activate the altar with the blood of the divine. In short, sacrifice your life to send us to the mortal world. Or perhaps there is another option that will save yourself as well. Our lives are in your hands, Athena, goddess of wisdom. Choose wisely."

Athena glanced down at the spear in her hand. She stepped onto the altar. She turned the Soulslayer so that the blade pointed towards herself.

And she plunged the spear deep into her heart.