TW: fighting and some blood mentioned

Stories of the Forgotten Gods

In a room near the top of the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, Anders has continued to be trained by the Greek God of War, Ares. This takes place weeks after his mission to the moon in the year 2024, where he brought back the God of the sun, Helios, not after having a terrifying encounter with the Greek God of darkness, Erebus. This is heard through the floor the man and God are on.

POW!

POW!

POW!

RIP!!!

The punching bag hits the ground, and sand spills out and covers the floor.

Anders, visibly angered, kicks the almost hollow bag across the room into the chairs right next to where Ares is observing.

"Wow, kid, that's what the seventh one you've broke today!" said Ares as bold as ever. 

"Yes, it is," said Anders disappointingly. 

"Alright, time for the eighth. Should I give this one 20 minutes at the least? What do you say?"

"Look, sir, I've been here for about four hours just punching away, and I get it. It's good training, but we've been doing this training for three days now. I've established that I can throw a punch.

"Trust the process, kid. This is what Heracles did to get his strength, and he became the Greek God of strength."

"Yeah, but when was the last time anybody became a god or has ascended to godhood?"

"We haven't had any mortal that had joined any pantheon let alone our pantheon in around a few millennium kid."

"Why?"

"I don't know kid…. But I wish I did. I wish is knew why half the things had to change. Our children aren't even immortal anymore. I…” Ares tears up and seems to think strongly to find his words "I've seen so many of my children over the years pass on… almost no god has learned how to not grow attached to a mortal even knowing they will be gone so soon in a blink of their eye. I have loved each of my children and have grown to care for many of the mortals I have trained."

"I-I'm so sorry, sir. I shouldn't have brought this up."Anders said regrettably.

Anders began to think to himself, "That's why he was so distant at first. He's trying to not care for me like others. I mean, any human is basically a child to him, and almost any God in comparison, from the newest baby to the oldest man, is practically one and the same when compared to God's age. That's definitely why he calls me kid, even though I'm twenty-four. That reality is so… lonel-"  *Knock* *knock*Anderes thoughts are interrupted by a knock from the door. A man, no, a god the size of Ares, if not bigger, in a white t-shirt, jeans with a brown belt, a brown leather jacket, a beard, and medium hair, was knocking on the doorway.

"Who is this?" He thought

Ares entire face went from sad to over joyed and not even a second after Anders realized this he hears from this man "ARES MY BROTHER, HOW HAVE YOU BEEN?"

"HERACLES, MY BROTHER, HOW ARE YOU? IT HAS BEEN A LION'S AGE!"

"Wait, the God of strength? The ancient hero? Heracles!"

They give a firm hand shake, which was a clash shaking the whole tower.

"WOW! The entire building is shaking, I almost forget that they have otherworldly strength especially the God of War and the God of Strength!" Anders thought

"I couldn't be more happier that you haven't lost your touch, Ares!" 

"Likewise, Heracles! Now let me introduce you to the Human Chosen by the Fates, meet Anders, and Anders, meet Heracles, the God of strength and my best friend."

"Wow it is an honor to meet you lord Heracles! I've memorized all of your tasks and studied them relentlessly!"

"Ah the Twelve Task of Me, one of my favorite stories and i promise ill tell you them myself in due time. But I have to say it is my honor to meet you young one. I don't think the fate have been this interested in any being since Zeus (the former King of the Gods) to my knowledge."

"Yes indeed Anders here is quite a formidable warrior! But I don't really know why the Fates would be so interested in him there were many great warriors similar to him in the past. Don't know yet why hes so special."

"Yeah I could gather that somebody in this room can throw a mean punch. Is the sand covering the entire floor and the ripped punching bags you're doing Anders?"

"Yes sir I wish that they wouldn't break so easily it's extremely aggravating!"

"Yes! Now onto business, did you bring what I asked for?"

"Yep!" Heracles pulls out a punching bag with a brown fur instead of leather. "Here it is, a indestructible punching bag made from some lion skin. Here you go kid"

"Wait! Thats indestructible lion skin!? The very lion you slayed over thousands of years ago! Sir i can't except this, it-it's one of your greatest trophies of one of your greatest accomplishment."

"Oh Anders please take, think of it as a old generation hero passing to the new generations hero."

"Sir Heracles…. Do you really think of me in the same league as you?"

"I do Anders, and by the way don't need to call me sir or anything of the sorts, just call me by my name, ok?"

"Ok…. Heracles thank you for the gift ill put it to good use, shall we test it out?"

"Go for it Anders its why he brought it."

"He's right!"

Anders takes the bag from Heracles's hand and set it up, it's a strange feeling for a thing this large to be so full with fur. It feels as if you are carrying a tamed wild beast or something of the sort. 

With the bag set up anders says "I feel like i don't have the proper strength to test it, would you two like to do the honors?"

Ares and Heracles both look at each other and nod, walking to opposite sides of the bag, where they both stand equally far away from the bag. They both wind up a punch and scream in unison.

"NOW!!!"

A burst of wind from the clash sent Anders back flying ten feet into a wall, a cloud of dust formed from all the sand of the punching bags and after it was settled there was ares, Heracles, and the bag standing there unharmed and unmoved. Every window in the room was cracked and even the walls were damaged as well. Breaking the silence was Anders

 "Jesus Christ…" Anders says

"Yeah, that reminds me of the only time we ever fought; remember Ares?"

"Oh how could i forget I still have the scar on my back!"

 "Hahahaha! How hard did I hit you with my mace again?"

"Hard enough to send me to a whole other part of Greece!"

"And the slash you did on my stomach hurt so much people thought my scream was a second pompeii!"

“HAHAHAHAHA” They both laugh

"Wait, you two fought?"

"Here, let's talk about it on the balcony *cough* *cough* this sand is getting to me."

"*Cough* same here."

"Yes, let. *Cough*"

They all step out to the balcony where they all look out over the city and Ares and Heracles begins the story.

Thousands of years ago, Ares and Heracles were drinking and couldn't decide which place to drink was better, this bar in Athens or another in Corinth, and decided to try both. They take barrels of wine from both places to drink. Little did they know that Hemers and Apollo (two other gods) put something in their drinks that made them aggressive. They fought over wine for about twenty minutes until when Ares was turning around to grab his sword, Heracles struck him from the back with a quick blow, shattering his armor on his back. This blow sent him flying from Corinth to Athens, and when Heracles got there, Ares sliced him in the stomach. The yell that was let out from the slash to the stomach shook all of Athens. They both were at their feet at this point and clashed weapons, and they both shattered on contact. They tossed their weapons to the side and decided to use the weapons they had had since birth, their bare hands. Punch after punch, blow after blow, it went on for hours till the smoke around them was stained red. Hermes and Apollo, realizing that they had to fix this, got between the weakened gods and were able to subdue them for a mere moment to give them the antidote to reverse the drug. They both calmed down and collapsed but because Apollo is a god of healing. He was able to repair any damage done to them. But when they awoke and found out what happened, they beat the brakes off of Apollo and Hermes to the point where other gods had to step in so the 2 could still be able to do their job. But in the end, the wine in Corinth was better.

"Yeah, so that's the story, kid."

"Wow, so that's the only real fight y'all have ever had?"

"Yep, we don't fight; we just get along pretty well."

"Well, while you two keep talking. It looks like the dust settled, and I want to try out the new punching bag!"

"Ok kid have at it!"

Anders walks back in and begins train once again finally being able to go all out on something.

"You know i wonder what the fates have in mind for him? It has to be great for them to take this much notice in him, and hes only a human too its surprising."

"Yeah he hasn't done as many great things like you did or Achilles, but he did bring back Helios."

“Hey, that's a feat all in itself. Hey, quick question: how's that woman charity thing you set up?”

“Oh, the abused woman shelters? They are going well, why do you ask?”

“Well, it's just I didn't take you for the one to be all in the feminist stuff, you know? Not that it's wrong, just saying.”

“No i get it my friend, my mother is Hera, you remember that right? Shes the God of women basically, if I didn't help women a little bit she would have my head on a steak if i just stat by.”

“So that is why you got your lesser-known title, "Protector of Women."”

"Yep, that's how I-"

*RIP!!!

Both Ares and Heracles stop and turn to one another to make sure they both hear the ripping of the bag.

"What was that!?" 

Ares and Heracles both run into the room, where they can't believe what they see. The indestructible lion skin bag was split open, sand pouring out, Anders was sitting there surprised, looking at his hand back and forth, unable to process what he had just done.

"Kid, did you rip the bag? It's indestructible how did you-" Ares said, barely putting together the sentence.

Heracles goes to pick up the bag to not just see it but feel it. The skin that nothing could even damage, not lighting from Zeus himself, not any spear thrown by any god, not even a nuke could scratch it. Yet here it is, lying beneath Heracles’s feet with a gaping hole in it made from a mere human. 

"It's normal… it's normal lion skin now!" Exclaimed Heracles

"What?!" Ares shouted

"Yeah it-it’s just a normal pelt… Anders, what did you do?"

"I…. I don't know?"

"Kid, you're not stronger than us, we know that. Items like this don't lose their touch just… because, you did this! You must have somehow turned this impenetrable hide normal!"

"Oh god….What does that mean?"

“I- I don’t know….”