How to Be a God [ManXMan]

Chapter One - A God Among Men

~Chapter One: A God Among Men~

Everything is white. The walls and columns are all made of pristine white stone, the floors are made of smooth white marble, and then there are the large white sculptures scattered throughout the...well, I would not call it a castle. I suppose the correct term would be temple. The Greeks have such strange names for their places of worship and living.

"Wait here."

I glance at my father, the fair-haired Belenus, who narrows his dark eyes at me in warning, and then follows our current king god, Lugh, into the main part of the temple, the meeting room. I am not actually allowed inside, though, so I must wait out here, like some sort of servant. It is frustrating, but my father thought it would be a good way to keep me from causing mischief among the other gods in my pantheon. The last time my father thought to leave me alone for a time, he returned to find a new mortal war to have started. It was not actually any fault of mine, but I might have implied my involvement.

The position of the sun has barely changed by the time I grow bored of standing in the empty hallway, waiting for the meeting of the Divine Council, which will undoubtedly last for many hours more, to end. Thankfully, the Divine Council, where the king gods and leaders of each pantheon gather, only meets once in a mortal year or when something vastly important has occurred. Otherwise, I would be dragged along by my father, who almost always attends with whoever our king god is, more often than I would find tolerable.

Glancing at the large temple doors – also white – I cautiously take a step away. I pause, waiting for my father or Lugh to come out and shout at me, but when no such thing happens, I swiftly start moving, putting as much distance between me and the room as possible. There is nothing like causing a little mischief in a temple not of my own pantheon. How kind of the Titans to host this year.

Retaining a calm outward demeanor should I happen upon anyone, I begin to look for the perfect target, whether it be a Titan, one of their rumored god-children, or a mere servant, I have yet to decide. Father will be furious, but he must learn that one cannot stop the god of trickery simply by bringing me away from home. Mother, however...Father's wrath is nothing compared to hers and I will have to keep the trickery to a minimum if I do not wish her to hear of it.

The farther I walk, however, the more I start to wonder how large this place is. And why there are not any doors. It seems like the only doors in the entire temple are the ones for the meeting room, while everything else is blocked by curtains or magic. Not only that, but I have not seen a single item made of wood aside from those large doors. It is as if they do not know the existence of trees.

It is just as all the white is beginning to hurt my eyes that I spot something that brings me great relief – a garden. It is not exceptionally large, and is surrounded on all sides by the temple, making it appear to be more of a resting area than an actual garden, but it is still green and there is a single tree, which is better than nothing, I suppose. There is a great deal of shrubbery, though, and most of it I have never seen before. Curiosity and the need to be surrounded by something other than white walls are what urge me to go there instead of continuing to seek out my next target.

The ground is almost as hard as the marble under my fur boots, but it feels nice to be out in the light of the sun now. However, it seems my enjoyment of this garden will not be long, as a very particular sound reaches my ears. At first, I am uncertain as to what it is, but when the sound grows louder, my face flushes and I quickly turn on my heels, intent on leaving before I happen upon the persons somehow hidden from sight in this small garden.