In Ancient Greece, five of the Olympic gods descended to Earth. In the dead of the night they appeared at the home of a soothsayer so powerful, no-one was allowed to know her name. Gathering around her, Zeus was the first to speak.

  “Tell us of the future you see.” He ordered her. The Soothsayer sat on a cushion on the floor, her eyes distant as she allowed the spirits to whisper in her ear.

  “Mighty Zeus, gods of Olympus.” She addressed them in an airy, whispery voice. She was no more than a girl, and yet some of the greatest beings in the universe were in her little room, asking for her counsel. “The future I have seen is not for the faint hearted.” She then turned and looked at Zeus, her distant eyes seeing past him. “Are you ready to hear how your beloved family will end?” Hera gasped and put her hands up to her face in horror.

  “Tell us.” Poseidon asked her. She turned to look ahead again, and gasped a breath as the spirits used her to tell their tale.

  “A time of great sadness will come upon you. We see betrayal, anger, despair. And a war most foul; a destruction of everything you have built.”

  “And where does this threat come from?”Hestia asked. The girl cackled with a thousand voices.

  “Your children.” She said, and the spirits left her.

  When the gods had returned to Olympus, they sat in silence, until finally Poseidon spoke.

  “What are we going to do?” He asked, voicing what the others had all been thinking. Demeter wailed, and Hera tried to comfort her to no avail. Finally Zeus, who had before been deep in thought as to how to prevent this prophecy from coming true, stood up and spoke.

  “We must not lose control!” He bellowed, and the only sound that came from Demeter was a hiccup of a sob. “We must not lose control. We need to think of a solution, and quickly.” Once more, the room was silent.

  “Perhaps I can help.” A voice said. The gods turned to see Athena walking towards them.

  “You were not asked to attend this meeting.” Poseidon said.

  “Poseidon, do not let your hate cloud your judgement. You know that I am the only one with a solution.” Athena said coldly, then turned to her father. “I have an idea.”

  “Tell us, and we shall discuss it.” Zeus said, leaning back in his chair.

  “We shall disband. We will use our power to become human, and none of us will remember a thing about our lives as gods.”

  “And how will that help?” Hera asked. Athena smiled sadly.

  “I believe that there is a chance that we can stop this future from happening if we go into hiding. I suggest that when our human bodies die, we are reincarnated in 2000 years. We will then once more become gods.” Athena looked to Zeus. He sighed.

  “I see no other alternative.” He said.

  “Are we going to tell Hades?” Hera asked.

  “No.” Said Zeus. “We cannot have any of the children know about any of this, and Hades will not deny Persephone anything.”Zeus said. Poseidon stood.

  “This is an outrage!” Poseidon yelled. “My daughter would have no part in this battle. She is loyal to us!”

  “I do not doubt that, brother, but you must see that she is more loyal to her husband! And you know that our brother is unpredictable! If he is the one who betrays us, Persephone will follow him, no matter what and so they must not know!” Poseidon sat down, anger clear on his face. “And so, we must sacrifice for the good of our family. When the time comes, Gaia will alert us, and we shall tell our children of their heritage. There is no other solution.” Zeus stood up and held his hands out. “Now, take my hands. And we shall be together again in 2000 years.” All took his hands, Poseidon rather reluctant, except for Demeter. She looked at them all sadly.

  “I don’t like this idea.” She told them.

  “Do not worry, sister.” Zeus said and she slowly took Athena and Poseidon’s hands. Poseidon gave her hand a little squeeze, although it did not comfort her. “Now, lend me your power.” Zeus said, and began to weave the complex enchantments needed. Then, in a flash, they all disappeared, as did those not at the meeting, and the Greek gods were no more.

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Author guidance for This story

Just thought that you should know, I have tweaked some of the mythology, such as Poseidon being the father of Persephone rather than Zeus, to fit my story plan better. I've also omitted many 'lesser' gods and demi-gods.

I will try to add the gods' human counterparts as I go along so that it's easier to keep track, but I may forget :)

I hope you enjoy it :)

updated Jan 27 by Drinibini