Chapter 9 — Summits of Monsters and Men
— — —
"Reporting from Sky News Traveler Department. We're reporting live about a terrorist attack by unknown groups on the Traveler Academy known as The Crucible of Discovery — famous for their collection of Traveler-related knowledge and the sheer value it held.
There have been reports of children being the target of the attacks, but they were stopped by a second unidentified group who also didn't leave clues to their whereabouts. No children were reported to be harmed besides minor injuries from the fallout of an S-class Traveler conflict.
As of rig—wait one second… Hold on, follow me! Guys, this is Sky News reporting live that more sites of conflict have been found, and Travelers are attempting to erase anything left—"
The feed cut out.
"The result were five news crews almost recording the sight if Simon didn't risk his life by striking their cameras to minimize casualties. Do I need to explain any further why all of you are going to a cosmic therapist first thing?"
The words hung over the squad seated before me — all visibly shaken by what they'd witnessed.
The cameras hadn't caught it, but they had been present to see the descent into madness of ordinary people.
Just a glimpse, or the faint echo of that boy's presence, was enough to unravel their minds.
They were sentenced to death by a concept above anything we could grasp. Simon had to end them before knocking out his own team to stop the corruption.
He's strong enough to handle the boy under normal conditions — but not when the boy nearly dies and wakes up whatever's inside him.
It's harmless to most Travelers, largely because it doesn't care about us at all.
As long as the boy he calls Prince of Death isn't harmed before he's ready to fight for himself, we're beneath its notice.
Whatever crude, half-joking thing that angel of death once said — I refuse to think too deeply on it.
He's safe, and the crew survived with only minor casualties.
— — —
"TO WAR!!!"
Leading the charge into the ogre ranks with the blessings of this new God, I can't help but feel vigor and justice at the sight of my goblin kin slowly building up in this world.
We might be a minor faction right now, but with the blessing reinforcing us to turn myth into reality, piece by piece we walk the path he's creating for us.
From goblin → hobgoblin.
From hobgoblin → orc or variant types.
While my personal aim is to sit at the top as his avatar of ????, I can't quite grasp it — but with each monster we take down, the stronger we become.
Even the groups who submit to me through ???? make me more … diverse.
My mind has slowly re-pieced my past selves, but it's scattered in dreams I can't fully hold.
Yet every night, as we close our eyes in darkness, each of us is taught more than any human could ever teach.
Although we don't hate humans, the thought of serving one no longer feels impossible.
He doesn't demand obedience or sacrifice — only that we abide by the natural rules of the world and his compass.
That alone is enough.
So I close my eyes again after plunging into battle with the leader of our kind — already an orc — to embrace any hope of catching those divine histories that ???? says can teach us.
— — —
"How you feeling, Thomas?"
Looking at his arm, practically good as new, as he stuffs his face with muffins — eating them like candies — me and Alexis just stare in wonder at his unnatural body.
"Good as new. Nothing a night's sleep can't fix. But seriously, Crow — what the hell was Olympus doing coming after us?"
Alexis nodded, eyes narrowing as I'm left, as usual, to make the guesses.
"I want to say it's because of the dungeon situation. But that would put them on Baldur's radar, and he isn't exactly keen on letting Alexis be placed in danger. So unless Zeus has a death wish, I don't know why he thought even my uncles wouldn't keep people around here.
If it was about information or forcefully recruiting us, then they botched it badly. I wouldn't doubt if Uncle Tasey is back after Cani-B made an appearance."
The worry in Alexis's eyes at the implications of both her father and Cani-B joining forces again said everything.
That argument had nearly turned the U.S. Traveler factions into a three-way civil war with the government stirring the pot.
"Then shouldn't we go hide out at the guild? At least Alexis and I can run to our families, but you can't exactly run to Cani-B demanding shelter without being labeled a criminal by the government."
Alexis blinked — surprised — as I laughed at Thomas's rare moment of strategic clarity.
"Neither would they. They like seeing me stir the pot. Gives them a chance to act out on a usually boring protection detail. I don't know who keeps telling other students we're superheroes in training, but if two groups can cause a civil war then I doubt it."
They both nodded slowly.
I figured I'd at least see if Huginn had any information to get me ahead of the curve.
— — —
"Really, Lily? Going from the end of times to the beginning?"
Nicole's tone was halfway between disbelief and fatigue.
"I thought taboos were crazy when you said you understood why people descend into madness, but you went through it on such a simple paradox."
I just stared back at her, words failing.
Whatever explanation I'd planned collapsed somewhere between guilt and curiosity.
She sighed, blowing the frustration from her chest without finishing the sentence.
The look of defeat on her face was enough to crush any excitement I had about my new discovery.
"So it had to be the speech?" I asked, a weak defense at best.
"Really? Well, at least it makes more sense than whatever idea your idiot mind was cooking."
Nicole rubbed her temples. "I don't know how you're an established researcher sometimes.
They were talking about the Astral Gods, Lily. If you weren't paying attention, you could've easily aligned your mind with the right words the prophet said. Keys and all that — things the Gods kept demanding of us.
Maybe the key still exists if a prophet can repeat it."
Her reasoning made too much sense, and I hated that.
The mention of "keys" struck something buried deep — the same phrase written in Odin's diary, the one Crow still couldn't decipher.
— — —
"So Zeus is getting active again?"
The bottle left my hand and arced through the orange light of the bonfire.
"I thought my last beating was enough of a reminder to mind his rank. Haha! I swear, besides that son of Oceanus, the rest in Olympus are trash — except maybe the wise one."
"It's like he wants the explorers to tear down that pathetic mountain he's rebuilding," Monkey snorted, catching the bottle mid-air.
"Maybe then he'll understand what his group really served while being contradictions. What do you think, Monkey? Should we go help Tasey for old times' sake?"
He laughed, shaking his head.
"No. Tasi sent word to stay back. He wants Tasey to deal with what's coming.
If he or Agni aren't asking for help, then the top dog's back home. Unless you feel like getting burned for playing with fire like Agni, just stick to the dungeons until he finds us."
He tossed the bottle back; I caught it, blinking in surprise.
"Besides," Monkey went on, "I found some talents worth raising in China after I beat down Guan Yu and his boys for using my Divine Title as a shield. Found three decent ones — Buddha, Qi Sei, and Shin. I changed Shin's title to Shiva.
Once I find that shadowy bastard and his reapers, he'll be forced to take us to the Astral Sea with his key. Odin really made it a pain in the ass to enter the Sea."
Even Dragon looked up at that, surprised by Monkey's sudden interest in raising disciples.
"Good. We can use Shin to take Tiger's spot, Buddha can have the Snake, and Qi Sei can manage China. That leaves three seats open."
Across the fire, Tim sat half-masked and silent, bored by the entire talk of Olympus.
"Why so quiet, Tim?" Snake teased from behind her fan. "I heard your nephew was involved. Don't tell me you think anyone can actually break that brat. Our kids have ridiculous talents to compete with."
Tim exhaled, expression unreadable.
"Why wouldn't I be quiet? Drake and his little wolf pack are probably already meeting up with Tasey and the little devils — only to run into a brick wall. Rumors say that bully's coming back."
Laughter rippled around the circle.
"He'll beat all three of you bastards once he finds out you've got shadow groups and he doesn't!" Monkey barked, wheezing between laughs.
"That bastard uses justice like a weapon — pettiest man alive!"
"Tiger, you're one to laugh," Tim shot back. "You were one of his biggest victims in the Sea. If you hadn't joined us, you'd have been dead before it sealed."
The fire popped between us, sparks rising like old memories.
For a rare moment, the legends of the old explorers just laughed.
— — —
Walking into the Traveler Society HQ, the noise hit like a storm. Reporters pressed forward, cameras flashing until the guards pushed them back.
Travelers were treated like superheroes these days, and the attention had become unbearable.
Every question demanded an absolute answer to mysteries that even gods debated.
One day they asked how the universe worked.
The next, they demanded to know why it worked.
But explorers weren't researchers.
Whether it was madness or wanderlust, we were drawn to the unknown like moths to dying stars.
Some of us had witnessed centuries. Others — like Odin — millennia.
Nothing else could explain the bizarre nature of the Odin Diary: a chronicle of endless warfare, written across cycles of reality.
It was the last relic of an age now whispered about as The Lost Generation.
"Mrs. Artemis! Just one word about the latest events — how do you plan to respond if rumors are true that Zeus ordered the attack on your son? Was Zeus also involved in the dungeon break with Hades?
Reports are stating that Cani-B and the Wolf Pack have been sighted all over Europe attacking Olympus-aligned groups!"
The reporter's mic hovered far too close.
Hidden motives glimmered behind the forced smile.
I didn't answer.
Questions like that weren't meant for truth — they were bait.
Zeus's obsession with becoming one of us had already crossed every line.
And the others around him — those SS-level Travelers — weren't any better.
Even Oceanus, with his key, would never let Zeus get a single sniff of it.
So we were left cleaning up the mess his grandson made playing god in a sandbox.
Maybe that's what happens when the Sky defeats the Ocean too many times — revenge breeds arrogance, not peace.
Now his descendant plays ruler of a fake heaven, ignorant of the prototype who came before.
As I walked the halls, the murmur of Travelers and aides filled the air.
Every step echoed the same tension — preparations for the coming summit of American Guild leaders.
The calm before a storm only the gods could hear.