Olympus
Home of the Olympians, this was a place of beauty. The architecture looked as though it were crafted by the Gods themselves. Which it was, in fact. Yet despite the tranquility and peace it seemed to represent, Olympus was nothing compared to its former glory. In the days when humanity still believed in them, still worshipped them, still sacrificed for them; Olympus was a fine sight indeed. It was thought then that the mere sight of the grand structure could kill a mortal. Today, it would merely astound them.
"This is an outrage! An insult!" Zeus roared, striding up and down his personal quarters in a fit of rage. Hermes, Messenger of the Gods, was looking quite apprehensive about the situation.
"Regardless, father, it is true. Helena Troy has joined the Champions of Peace." Hermes repeated, levitating above the ground as the wings on his feet slowly pushed him towards the door.
"She dares?! My own flesh and blood!" Zeus fumed, sitting at his throne and gripping fiercely at the arm-rests. Hermes decided it wouldn't be wise to remind Zeus that he had long ago rejected Angeni. "She thinks I will stand for this? Allying herself with those who steal our glory?! Those who are now worshipped in our stead?! NO!" He leapt to his feet again, his eyes full of anger, as he glared at Hermes. "Fetch me the twins, Phobos and Deimos."
Eager to leave, Hermes obliged at once, and soon the two sons of Ares stood before their grandfather. "You may be young, but you are still Gods. Powerful Gods." Zeus smiled kindly at his grandchildren, lying through his teeth. If he truly thought they were powerful he would have treated them the same as Helena. She was too powerful, a threat to his throne, and had to be banished. "You are the Gods of Fear and Terror. And today, I want you to strike fear and terror into the hearts of our enemies. You will go down to Earth and you will destroy the Champions of Peace."
Phobos and Deimos shared a glance, then nodded simultaneously. "Forgive us, grandfather, but--" Phobos began. "--may we be so bold--" Deimos continued, before Phobos interjected with "--as to enquire why--" and Deimos finished "--you even need us at all?" The two young Gods continued in this manner as they asked "After all, you are--a mighty God, far more--powerful than we and--surely you could--meaning no offense--settle this matter yourself?"
There was a reason Zeus could not openly attack the Champions himself: Helena. If Angeni were to defeat him on the field of battle, he would lose his position in Olympus. But of course, he could not tell the twins that. "I have far more important matters to attend to, children." He boasted falsely "This will be a simple task for you two, if you utilize your skills correctly. But no-one is to know that I have told you to do this. It will be our little secret, yes?"
The twins shared another knowing glance and a nod, replying in sync: "Yes, grandfather."
Champion Tower
In the home of Champions, a short, crippled, teenage boy wandered the halls, hurling himself forward on his crutches. He had jet black hair and wore a yellow shirt with denim jeans. He was Eclipse, Jason Dodd, the Teen Wonder. Former leader and founder of the Vine Titans; member of the Ice Dragons; apprentice of Jake Hamilton; co-leader of the Champions of Peace, and now... Sole leader of the Champions of Peace. Originally working alongside his mentor, Nighthunter and his friend, Mistress Redhead, Eclipse was a third of the trinity which held the Champions together.
But now? Nighthunter had resigned from his leadership position, and Mistress Redhead... A short while ago, there was an alien invasion. A race called the Skrulls had infiltrated Earth, replacing various heroes and important people. When the time came for the full-blown invasion, it was the Champions of Peace who resisted and together, defeated the alien threat. But there were casualties, and losses. Constantine the immortal was one such loss, sacrificing himself to destroy the mothership. Jason glanced at the golden watch on his wrist, the watch left to him by Constantine... Which led him to England, and the Con-cave.
After the invasion, the government decided to interrogate the Champions of Peace. Every member of the team was subjected to an interview at the hands of the cold, calculating Agent Callisto. Some took it very well, others not so well. Last to be seen was Sarah Lockhart, Mistress Redhead. Jason didn't know the specifics, but apparently she withheld information on the Skrulls from the government and was placed under arrest. Chevie, her daughter, took this very hard indeed. But none were more affected than her husband, Mike, Sovereign Son. Almost immediately, Mike approached Eclipse and told him he was going to break Sarah out. He wanted to take both the Shadow Squad and Young Champions on the mission.
Normally, Eclipse would have shot down this plan and come up with his own. He did not think it was a good idea to send the Young Champions on this mission; nor did he really think breaking Sarah out of a government facility would accomplish anything. Yet, with the loss of Redhead, Jason had lost his nerve. He couldn't bear the full weight of leadership for such a massive team. After all, he had abandoned the Titans when the leadership duties became too much, and they only had a roster of about eight. This was a much larger scale... So Eclipse agreed with Sovereign Son and let him get on with it. At least it would get Hesperus out of his hair for a while.
Making his way to the conference room, Eclipse heaved himself into one of the chairs at the round table, resting his crutches against the edge. He leaned back and closed his eyes. This was his down-time, something Mistress Redhead had enforced when it became clear that Jason wasn't going to be able to continue being a full-time superhero following his disability. He was essentially given a few hours each day to get down with superhero business, and then forced to spend the rest of the day resting. Today, he hadn't even used up his superhero time. He just didn't have the drive for it today.
Opening his eyes, Jason looked around sadly at the empty table before him. He wasn't the only one hit hard by the recent losses, but everyone else was dealing with their problems in other ways. Well, Eclipse was fed up with wallowing. He decided that now was the time for everyone to move on and get on with their jobs. They couldn't let this get to them... He couldn't let it get to him. Withdrawing his communicator and pushing a button, Eclipse sent a message to the entire team, all of those not already occupied on Mike's mission, anyway. "This is Eclipse, I want a status report. I need to know where everyone is and what they're doing. Sovereign Son's rescue team just left, and I want to call a team meeting. All available Champions report to the conference room in one hour."
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