The Captive Titan [ManxMan]

Chapter Nineteen: Dream Date

~Chapter Nineteen: Dream Date~

What I want to do is shout to express my anger in the best way I can because that is just stupid. I want to rage over the fact that after everything that has happened, we are just going to let the Greek gods get away with their crimes - with their betrayals. The Titans and Slavs will need help, and though we have been both directly and indirectly impacted, we are going to hide away in our realms and wait for the winners to be announced.

What I actually do is drop my head into my hands and focus on my breathing, because as much as I hate it, I understand. I contacted the Dagda weeks ago knowing that he may very well lock me away in a spelled tower all the while maintaining our pantheon's neutrality. Just because I begged him to reconsider our stance does not mean he actually would. And even if he actually did reconsider, he must have decided that it would be better to remain as we have been rather than taking up arms. The Dagda might be angry over what happened to me, but even I can respect a king god not allowing his anger to make his decisions for him.

Even if the outcome is not what I wanted.

"Did he say why?" I ask eventually, lifting my head to avoid muffling my words.

Gwyn crosses his arms. "Our pantheon has always been small in numbers," he says. "Too much in-fighting, and the loss of the Fomóiri, even as our enemies, limited us in a way we did not foresee. We lost ground and worshippers to the renamed Greek gods through the Romans and then almost everything else was taken by the Roman Christians. Our pantheon is not what you remember, but even what you remember was not a strong pantheon. Had it been the Greeks rather than the Christians back then, we would have lost just as soundly. Only now, we are weaker."

But I'm here, is my initial thought, but it is a stupid one because I am not that important or powerful, and due to my condition, I am not always as here as I need to be. It would be just my luck that I would have an episode in the middle of a battle because it would remind me of something from my past.

So, instead, I just close my eyes for a moment before asking, "Why are you telling me this?"

Out of everyone, Gwyn is the last person I would have expected to fill me in on the fact that the Dagda is keeping secrets from me. Not necessarily because he likes to keep me in the dark but because if the Dagda feels the need to keep something secret from me specifically, then it is very likely that it is something Gwyn would agree with. In fact, I imagine some of the things the Dagda might be willing to tell me about, Gwyn would actively argue against sharing with me.

"I don't want you to be surprised when you eventually find out," my uncle replies, eyeing me for a moment before looking down at the city in the distance. "Ruad Rofhessa wants to believe that you will forget about the war or stop caring, given enough time and incentive, but I was the one caring for you in Faerie during the Titanomachy; I know you won't drop it so easily, especially not without Atlas here beside you."

Thinking back, I did cause a lot of trouble for Gwyn while I was in Faerie because of how much I did not want to be there while Atlas was out fighting a war, and that is probably what he is recalling as well. "I'd just be angry," I agree, as my initial response to Gwyn's statement is a clear indication of that, though I imagine it would probably be ten times worse if I found out later and was within shouting distance of the Dagda.

Or, worse, if I found out shortly before the borders close for however many years the war rages.

"Still," I mutter, "you must have heard about Hermes' warning by now. I don't think Zeus is going to wait patiently for us to close our borders. What happens if he attacks?"

My uncle contemplates my question for a moment with a frown. "It depends what he does," he admits after a moment. "The Dagda may just close the borders early and release the Titans when it is safe if he has enough forewarning, but without it, it depends on the attack and its magnitude."