A new age of Divinity: Theomachy

Aftermath

Beth groaned as she woke up, feeling the same kind of bed under her as the night before. She sat up and looked around, seeing Eir's infirmary again. She sighed and layed back down, completely exhausted from the previous night. She looked to the side and saw Hayden and Kenneth sitting asleep on the couch. She turned over and grabbed a lamp on her bedside table. She reached over and poked Hayden in the forehead with it. He twitched and opened his eyes, noticing that he was leaning on Kenneth. He pushed the son of Hermes away and heard Beth giggling.
"Hey, Elizabeth," He said while getting up and stretching "How are you feeling?"
"Uh... not terrible," She replied as they hugged each other "Just a little sore, I suppose."
"Huh, well then you're definitely feeling better than Dallr."
"Wait, Nate!? Where is he?" Hayden pointed past her and she turned over "Oh, my Gods..."
He was still unconscious and like the previous night, he was barely moving aside from his breathing. While the blood had been cleaned off of him and he was in different clothes, the damage was still clearly visible. The wounds on his face and his shaky breathing showed just how bad he had been beaten. She had barely ever even been able to put a hand on him in their fights, but Athena tossed him around as if he was simply a mortal, not one of if not the best fighter in the camp. Beth got up and walked over to him, then placed a hand on his shoulder. Even with the simple touch she could feel that Athena had basically broken it.
She looked back at Hayden and asked "Is he going to be okay?"
"According to Eir, yeah. He should be," Hayden assured her "Thing is, we don't know when he'll wake up. He took a worse beating than pretty much anything I've ever seen last night."
Beth glared at him for a moment, then asked "Besides me, right?"
"You got thrown through walls. Dallr took shots from an actual Goddess, got thrown through an entire cabin, almost got his back broken, and he got stabbed a few times. Dallr took a worse beating than you."
"Okay, fine. Wait, why do you always call him Dallr and not Nate?"
"Why does everyone call you Beth? Preference."
"Oh, fine. How is Kenneth?"
"Exhausted, that race he had with her took a lot out of him, but that's not what we need to talk about right now." She sat on Nate's bed, right next to his unconscious body. "She gave an ultimatum last night, three years to join her or she'll kill us all."
"Wait, she would go that far!?" Beth exclaimed.
"I... yes!" Nate groaned as he got up, causing Beth and Hayden to yelp and jump back "Of course she would... ya lazy bitch... she destroyed our home... just to make a point." He rolled over and grunted loudly as he fell on his still bloody nose "Your mother is a sociopath. I couldn't see into her head but even I could tell that she had some issues with a lack of control."
"She is a Goddess, it makes sense."
"Poseidon is one of the Big Three, and yet has he ever thrown a temper tantrum about people polluting his domain?"
"Yeah, that's what hurricanes, earthquakes, and tsunamis are," Hayden said, not happy to be able to correct Nate, but genuinely concerned that he got the chance to "Are you okay? Everyone knows about that."
"Ugh... my head's kinda... fuzzy," Nate replied while using the bed to keep himself standing "Damn... last night was..." He reached up and touched the blood that began running from a wound on his cheek that had reopened from his fall "Fun..."
"I think he's losing it," Hayden said.
"Oh, come on. I love fighting and I actually got to go toe to toe with a God. Personally, I think that's the most fun I've had in years."
"That's fucked up, you're fucked up."
"Whatever."
"Guys, can we please get back to the problem at hand?" Beth asked "My mother will kill you all if I do not join her warriors, and yet you know what she did to me last time. Next time, she would make sure there would be no way for you to come for me."
"Yeah, you're right. Thing is, even Gods forget the things they say every now and then," Hayden replied "She'll probably end up forgetting her threat and just go on with her existence."
"Nate, what do you think?" Beth asked.
"This is the threat of a Goddess we're talking about here," Nate groaned as he sat down on the bed "Honestly, I don't know. If you think you should go see her and give her whatever answer you've got, then that might be a good idea. However, that's the best I can do to help you with something like this."
"Can we go for a walk?" Beth asked while stretching "I do not want to be stuck inside all day."
"Yeah, sure," Nate replied while struggling to get up.
"That sound good, I'll get my jacket and-"
"Hayden, would you mind if Nate and I just walked alone? I really need to talk to him."
"What? Uh... yeah, fine. Whatever." He watched as Beth put her shoulder under Nate's armpit and wrapped her arm around his shoulders so he could actually stay on his feet, and when Nate went by him, he hissed "Don't get any ideas."
"Same to you, asshole," Nate groaned as he and Beth walked out of the room "So, what did you wanna talk about?"
"I wanted your opinion on an idea I had."
"I already hate it, but go on."
"Maybe, I should give myself up to her, then when she takes me, we have a tracker inside my shirt or something so you know where to come get me."
"Ah, yeah. Great plan. You get kidnapped again, probably tortured even worse than the last time, and I've gotta form a strike force to face down a mad woman and probably all of her warriors now that she's quite calm with killing us, because she was going to kill me last night if you hadn't stepped in."
"Ah, so you admit I saved you?"
"I'm basically in need of a cane right now, so saving me is a stretch. You stopped me from going to Valhalla, though, so fuck you for that."
"Are you ever not going to be an asshole when we talk?"
"Most likely no."
"Yeah, thought not. But seriously, what do you think of the plan?"
"On a scale of one to ten it's a seven... point... you're gonna die." They came out of the infirmary and walked back to the office "I think we should speak with Orpheus and Freya. Being mythicals, they should have a better idea."
The two walked through the destroyed mess hall, which was really living up to its name. Estevan was on his own, putting the pillars back together. He looked over at them and glared daggers, but then held up the piece of wood with Beth's dried blood all over it. They glared back at him and Beth felt some kind of slow running liquid flow down her thigh. She looked down and saw that a wound on Nate's arm had reopened and his blood was running down her leg. Beth's eyes widened and she knelt down, then lifted Nate up onto his back. His glowing eyes had closed and more blood was flowing down the open wounds. She ran up the stairs to the office and slammed her shoulder against the door.
"Freya!" She yelled as she kicked the massive door "Open the door! I need your help! Freya, are you there!? It is urgent!"
"I'm still a God! Go away," She called calmly through the door.
"Nate is bleeding out! I do not have the means to seal all his wounds! Freya please!"
Freya opened the door quickly after hearing this and told her "Put him on the table. I'll take care of him, you talk to Orpheus now." Beth nodded and rushed over to Orpheus's room.
"Orpheus, I need your guidance," She said as she burst into the room.
"Beth? You're supposed to be in the infirmary. What's going on?"
"You heard what my mother said last night, right?"
"Yes, she made it known throughout the camp. I would say this will pass eventually, but when driven by fear, people can become very irrational. Now that more people think that a Goddess is angry with us, and that it's your fault, people may want to give you up. I want you to pick your friends and those you trust carefully. The word of Gods tend to be lies and deceit, many of the Olympians lie to get what they want, and I don't know Athena very well, however she is one of them, so I wouldn't let her words get into your head."
"Orpheus, she beat Nate to within an inch of his life, Kenneth almost killed himself trying to catch her, and she swatted me away without any effort. If she does come for me in three years time, then I do not know if anyone will be able to stop her."
"She faced three of the dozens of Demigods that we have here. Sure, she decimated you all, but that was because you attacked her one at a time. If she faces enough of you at the same time, defeating her could be possible."
"She has dozens of Demigods in her Athenian Warriors, they would also put up a fight should it ever come to blows," Beth reminded him "Not all Demigods would fight to preserve each other, some fight with intent to kill one another. Estevan has tried to kill me several times! He almost died three days ago!"
"Yes, that is the danger of fighting a God in any way," He replied while sitting down next to her "They will always have followers."
"Even someone like Beelzebub?"
"Yes... even that monster," Orpheus sighed "There are mortals who want nothing more than destruction and evil to reign supreme over their world... for... some reason."
"Mortals are strange."
"Yeah... yeah, they are."
"Alright, I'm done," Freya said as she walked back into the room "You two figure out your move?"
"Not really," Beth admitted "Is Nate okay?"
"He may be a bit slower for a few days, but aside from that, I think he'll be fine."
Hearing this, Beth sighed, then nodded, and walked out to Freya's room. She saw Nate rolling his shoulders, clearly still sore from the previous night. It was clear he was back to full strength though as he was standing completely straight. He was bouncing from foot to foot, making sure he could stay standing on one of them if necessary. While in the air on the penultimate hop, he rolled his neck before hitting the ground. The moment he did, he did one more small hop, then looked over at Beth again.
"How are you feeling?" She asked.
"Never better," He replied with a grin, then his attention face suddenly dropped and he looked at the door "Oh... that ain't good."
"What is it?" Beth asked.
"Think there are some schmucks who got the idea."
"Oh... great. Fine, I will go deal with them-"
"Nah, let me," Nate said "I've needed another fight all freaking day." He walked past her and cracked his neck and walked down the stairs, out of the mess hall, and looked at the group, then asked "Can I help you?"
"Uh, why the hell is he here? We're here for the Athena girl," One of the girls in the group asked.
"Yeah, I know that's who you're here for. I can read people's minds without even knowing they're around, dumbass. You don't need to say out loud what you were already thinking in that nasally ass voice."
"What the-"
"Shut the hell up and let someone else speak, bitch." He crossed his arms and asked someone else "Alright, who wants to ask the question?"
"Where's Beth!?" The biggest one in the group demanded.
"I've hidden her where you'll never find her."
"Uror," The seeming leader said.
"What? I don't have her," He replied, being one of the few Demigods named after their parent, but then he realized what the leader meant "Oh, okay." He disappeared for a moment before returning out the door of the mess hall and said "She's nowhere in the camp."
"What did I tell you?" Nate asked "Now, friends, if you want her... nah."
"Excuse me? You take us for a bunch of pussies, do ya?" The leader asked "Well, here's the thing man. We don't negotiate."
"Which explains the black eye," Nate sighed.
"The only one about to have a black eye here is you," The leader, who from looking into his head, Nate found out his name was James "Because you're outnumbered." Nate looked back as a few Demigods came up from behind him "You're her most powerful ally, so once you're out of the way, we can make sure our home's kept safe."
"Won't work," Nate replied "I may be outnumbered, but you're outmatched."
"Outmatched?" James asked as Nate got into an odd battle stance "Take him out."
Nate groaned and closed his eyes slowly and let out a breath while in his battle stance. He heard someone come up behind him and opened his eyes. He didn't even bother looking back as he ducked underneath a horizontal knife strike. He spun behind the boy, got back up, and side kicked him in the spine.
He fell to the ground and Nate asked "Who's next?"
The big one ran at him and started throwing a volley of punches at his face. While he was clearly incredibly strong, speed was not Nate's opponent's strong suit. He just jerked his head away from each attack, easily evading each strike. Nate finally blocked a punch, then hook punched his opponent across the jaw.
"Jacob, you're up," James said and a son of Apollo ran at Nate.
He looked at the Apollo son and when he saw a hook punch coming, Nate used the same strike. He tangled their arms and locked the Apollo son's arm while moving behind him. He put him in an armlock and pushed his forearm against the Apollo son's neck, which stopped him from moving his head.
"Augh! Oh, Albert! Help me!"
Said Demigod growled, then ran at Nate while yelling "Hey, hey, hey! Come on, bastard!"
Nate kneed Apollo's son in the chest, then let him go as he decided to focus on Albert. Albert punched at Nate's nose, but he used the back of his hand to deflect the blow. Nate ducked underneath the next punch and stepped to Albert's side.
"Albert, you had better not lose to this coward, you-"
"God, will you shut up!?" Nate yelled at the girl "You've done nothing but talk."
Nate suddenly swung a roundhouse kick into the side of Albert's knee, which knocked him down. While he was on one knee, Albert tried to attack him, but Nate just grabbed his wrist. With the other hand, Nate pulled Albert's head into his knee. He let go and spear poked Albert in the side of the neck, then roundhouse kicked him in the bridge of the nose. He went flying back and the Apollo son got back up and ran at Nate. He turned around and blocked a punch, then pulled him into a knee strike. Nate elbowed him in the temple, then grabbed him by the shirt, and threw him at Albert. The big black Demigod was still falling through the air and when the Apollo son crashed into him, they both fell unconscious.
"Well, guess those rumors about your fighting talent weren't just stories," James said.
"Yeah, and funny enough. Ever since the first guy, I haven't been using my powers. Your friends just suck, and I can tell your girlfriend is gonna..." He looked back and saw another assailant "Oh, never mind." He bent backwards underneath a hammer fist, then while he was on his back, kicked the Demigod girl up with both feet. "Seriously, this isn't the chick I was talking about, but even Estevan could've seen that coming." She fell on her back and Nate jumped, then performed a flying axe kick down onto the girl's stomach "You're so pathetic I had to praise Estevan... Estevan!" He got back up to his feet and James along with his girlfriend attacked him at the same time, but he just leaned out of the way calmly "So, who's next? James... or little miss big mouth?"
James' girlfriend finally got tired of Nate constantly disrespecting her and ran at him. She spun around and threw a spinning hook kick at his head, but he easily dodged it. He stepped back calmly and she took that as a sign he was starting to struggle. She ran at him again and tried another of the same kick, but he just leaned underneath it. She put both feet on the ground and punched at Nate's nose, but he just ducked the strike, and let her hit James.
"Oh, my god! James, I am so sorry!"
"Hey." She turned around and Nate knocked her out with a swift elbow to the temple, causing her to fall to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
"W- wait... how are you-?"
"Winning?" Nate asked "Yeah, I'm not using my abilities, and you've all got me outnumbered five to one. The thing is, I've had nothing to do but train my body and mind to become the best fighter I can... also look for Beth in my spare time."
"You know what? Fine, then. Come get this fade, bastard."
"Ooh, big man with the big words."
James scoffed and stepped forward, then he thrust a heel kick at Nate's chest. He easily sidestepped the attack and punched him in the stomach so quickly that by the time he felt it, Nate's hand was already at his side. He lurched forward in pain and Nate kneed him in the nose to get him to stand back up. James stumbled backwards and Nate side kicked him in the sternum, which knocked him backwards.
He fell on his back next to a potted plant and Nate asked "So, is this all you've got for me? Because this wouldn't even be a problem for Beth when she came back."
"You bitch ass pussy, stop playing with me!"
He got up and threw the plant at Nate, but he just slapped it away, showing that evasion wasn't all he was good for. James ran at him and punched at his nose, but Nate blocked it. He grabbed his fist and backfisted James across the jaw. He stumbled back and looked at Nate again, who calmly punched him in the temple. James stumbled and fell on his back, so Nate decided to finish it. He knelt down next to James and punched him in the nose, which knocked him out, and ended the fight.
"Well, that was fun," Nate said, not even breaking a sweat as he got back up, then he closed his eyes, and thought into Beth's head 'Unless you've got Athenian Warriors after you, defending you from others should be no problem whatsoever.'
She walked down and looked at the five unconscious bodies strewn all around him. She looked down at James and tilted her head, trying to figure out why he looked so familiar. After a few seconds she shrugged and just stepped over him, deciding that if she couldn't remember, it probably wasn't too important. They stepped over him and looked around at the camp. The race had thrown everything all over the place and Nate's beat down had sprayed blood all over walls and broken down an entire building or two. People were still trying to rebuild and Nate walked past the girl who's cabin he had been thrown through. She looked over at him, but then turned back to what she was doing.
"You two have history or something?"
"Yeah, I kinda crashed through her house while she was naked."
"Oh... shit."
"Yeah, she was a good sport about it though, I think it should be fine."