Thanatos

Chapter 3

Thanatos, the god of death; or the personification of death really. Megan had to admit that that wouldn't have been her first go-to for a suspect in the case.

Thing is, Thanatos was an obscure character in Greek mythology. Not much was taught about him in today's world. Even the ancient books had very few pages on him, and even fewer words within those pages.

However, the poppies and thetas couldn't have been mistaken; those were the mark of Thanatos. The unrenowned death god had visited those crime scenes in person, or someone had made it seem like he had at least.

"Does this provide you with any headway, Director?" Megan asked Dennis who was now back with the tablet in his hands, sifting through the photographs as if he was just seeing them clearly for the first time; and in a way, he was.

"A headway that a mythical death personality came all the way down to the mortal realm to cause two explosions and then leave his calling card for us to find," he returned, his eyes still not leaving the device in his hand. "Miss Months, I'm not sure how much of a headway that is."

"Well, you did name your organization Olympus." She shrugged.

Dennis stopped just as the words seemed to sink in. He looked up at her, a curious expression on his face. "Computer, search the database for every available document," he said. "Keyword: Thanatos."

A string of documents began to run across the screen of the tablet, ranging from words, to pictures, and even videos. The search lasted for about six minutes before it finally ended.

"Query concluded," the AI returned. "Match: Zero. Limited database access from device to further search."

Dennis sighed. "I guess this search will have to be continued back on Olympus," he said, standing up.

"You go do that, Director. I'll be here living my life." Megan stood up to show him the door. "Thanks for coming. I won't say it's been a pleasure meeting you again, but it's been far less unpleasant than I thought it will be."

Dennis stopped midway through adjusting his suit. "Wait, Miss Months, what are you saying?" A confused expression came onto his face. "I thought-"

"You thought I would just up and leave with you," she completed for him, adding a little chuckle at the end. "Director, haven't you been following the plot? I quit."

"Megan, there is a lot more at stake than either you or I can see right now."

"And you have three superpowered kids to help you deal with whatever threat the world may throw at you."

The kids, Megan stopped as her own words rang in her ears. The three superpowered teenagers that had formed the basis of her time on Olympus, and the foundation for her leaving too; or at least, a very large chunk of it.

Truth be told, it wasn't that she hadn't wanted to ask about them since Dennis arrived. The thought of them had been her constant companion through the year even as she vowed every day not to revisit the past. More than a few times, she had wondered how they were doing from the last time. She had wanted to know if it had changed them like it did her, unsure of which answer would be pleasant for her to hear.

Unfortunately, now that a real chance had appeared for Megan to assuage her thoughts in form of Dennis, she found that the courage eluded her to ask the long-awaiting question.

I have no right to know anything about them, she told herself. I'm the one who left them in the first place.

And to some extent, she was right.

Thing is, the last time Megan had seen the kids was a really dark one for them. The mission had gone irrevocably wrong at that point. Each of them were battered in more ways than one. Their lives were hanging by a thread, and maybe even worse - if there could be anything worse than dying - and that was when she had chosen to leave them.

Now, Megan didn't regret her quitting Olympus. It was a decision she felt she had to make then and she stood by it even at that moment, but she sometimes wondered if there was better way she could have done it that wouldn't make her feel so guilty towards the kids now.

So, those thoughts on her mind, she avoided the burning topic all night.

Well, there's no avoiding it anymore now, Megan realized.

She asked, "How are the kids?"

"Well, they're up, if that's what you want to know," Dennis replied, earning a relieved sigh from her. "But as to whether they're running, I'm afraid you'll have to come to the mountain to find that out for yourself."

"No," she returned almost immediately. "My answer's still no."

Silence descended on the room as Dennis just stared at Megan with his arms akimbo. He seemed to be thinking of a way forward, but Megan was dead set on countering whatever point he raised.

"Look, Megan," he began after a while, "I get why you quit. Believe me, I do. And I can't promise you right now that if you return, you'll be returning to an Olympus with the most moral viewpoint.

"But the truth remains that I need you. Olympus needs you. We've uncovered something big tonight. I know you feel it just as I do. And if this Thanatos issue turns out to be anything like the stuff from last time, then the world will need those kids, and they don't stand any chance of success without you.

"So, what do you say about second chances?"

Megan looked from Dennis to the neon-lit landscape outside the window. Five minutes to twelve, she saw the wall clock on her left read out of the corner of her eyes. The new year was almost upon them; with its new dawns, new resolutions, and new opportunities.

She moved to the window to get closer look of the view.

Megan counted to ten in her head and sighed, reaching into her pocket to bring out her phone for a dial. "Mr. Sun," she said the moment the call went through, "I'm sorry but I won't be resuming with you in the new year. I'm needed at home."