The Coming of Zeus

They say all the old gods and goddesses are gone. Not so. They just got bored with watching our boring-ass antics. I mean, even Zeus, who was as randy as was possible (even for a god) gave it up for awhile. For a millenia, they gave up watching us at all.1

Then, when they decided to check up on us, things had... changed. We suddenly numbered in the Billions and they had no idea how to watch us all.2

So the gods and goddesses, they had a meeting. It was decided that they would live in "microverses" in order to see what we were up to now. They would pick a spot, all of the gods and goddesses would cause themselves to be born into human forms, and for 40 or 50 years would see how things were in the small area around them. They would keep it secret from the other gods and goddesses where and who they would be.3

Oh, they ran into each other now and then, and if they recognized each other, things would either go good or bad, depending on the rivalries that were already there.4

However, this story is about a time that a large portion of the immortals ended up together in a small area. This was by accident, but then things...5

"Okay! Welcome to History 217, your professor is Dr. Glicnk, and I'm your TA for the semester, Irina. I grade tough but fair, I'm a total history nut -- duh, that's why I'm a History major at a techie school -- and if you ask for help, you'll get it. My office hours will be on Thursday nights from 5pm to 7pm, but if you need to get ahold of me other than that, you can either email me -- historygoddess@generictechieuni.edu -- or you can call over to the House and ask for me. Yes, I'm in a sorority, and all you girls thinking about 'Going Greek' I highly recommend you look at Kappa Delta. Any other questions? I mean, we have the Recitation first, so there's nothing for me to go over with you lot until after the Lecture tomorrow."6

Most of the students were nodding to themselves as they realized that they had a TA that would actually do her job, and they would have no trouble passing the class. The rest of the class were relaxing for the same reason.7

The questions and answers came casually at first, about the class, expectations, and such. Then they started getting more on the 'get to know you' platform. The last 15 minutes of the class, the guys talked about whatever guys talk about in one corner of the room, while the girls were asking Irina about Kappa Delta and Greeks in general.8

Irina was [AWARE] that she was really Inari, goddess of History, Memory, and Righteous Vengeance (among other things). However, from her observation of the others, a lot of the time it took a trauma for them to become [AWARE] of who they were until they returned unto themselves. This made them easy to manipulate. She had discovered that being the goddess of History made her immune to this effect, and that she could tell another god or goddess immediately. So this time, she had spent her "childhood" manipulating events to get all the gods and goddesses she could find into a small area. She wanted to see the sparks fly. Here, at GTU, she had gathered a lot of them. They were so into their "roles" that they didn't know who they were. Oh, she left her children and those that were aware of who they were alone, but there were enough here to watch.9

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -10

"Just be sure you're eating enough, Eustace," said his mother over the phone.11

"I am, Mom," he replied, once again thinking about next semester when he could move into the Frat House instead of the dorm. With phones in the rooms. The guys in the lounge were making faces at him as he talked with his mom on the payphone.12

"You know your father loves you, you just do him proud and you can take over the company when you're done with this Electrical Engineering nonsense."13

"It's not nonsense, Mom, and I don't WANT to take over Dad's Skydiving School."14

"You'll be fine at it, honey, you don't have to worry. Love from your dad and I. Buh bye!" *click*15

Eustace stood for just a second staring at the phone.16

"Um. Dude," came a voice from behind him on the couch, "you are aware that your mom talks loud enough for us to hear her over here, right?"17

Eustace hung his head and then hung up the phone.18

"Why's she call you 'Eustace' anyway, Zak?" 19

He turned around and looked at the three on the couch.20

He sighed, "Oh, that's because of the names thing. My dad's 'Zachary' and so 'Zak' would be too confusing at home, so the family calls me by my middle name. My older brothers have it worse. Hadon Eston and Phillip Donald. Had's an undertaker -- and some of the guys working for him take the first part of each of his names and call him 'Hades' -- Phillip... he's a Captain in the Navy. P... Sea... Don. His CO calls him Captain Poseidon. I can live with my middle name."21

"Oh!" said the little guy on the end of the couch -- the track scholarship guy, "If your brothers are Poseidon and Hades, think about it... man, your name even fits! Z, Eustace... Z, Eus... Zeus!"22

The other two chortled and the nickname stuck.23

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -24

Finals Week. Zeus was studying hard. Why would he need history for Electrical Engineering, anyway? He wanted to throw the book with all the dates and times against the wall and forget about it. But if he didn't get an A on this final, his GPA would be lower than his scholarships allowed. No way could he come up with an extra $4400 next semester without them.25

So he studied.26

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -27

Irina checked in on her favorite student quietly, invisibly using her powers to watch him struggle with the events and dates. She held in her snort so he wouldn't hear her, but his studying wouldn't do him any good. He dismissed her so casually all those years ago, and now... she'd see to it he was dismissed from school. She flitted to some of the other rooms to check on some more of her... relatives.28

The track star that housed Hermes was sleeping draped off the end of his bed, with his girlfriend -- who was actually inhabited by Iris.29

The president of the Greek Council, senior Mechanical Engineering Fellow, Festus "Heff" Smith was of course inhabited by Hephæstus. She was strongly tempted to reveal his true nature to him, as he deserved to know that he not only had two good legs, but the women fell over themselves to be with him.30

She went back to the House and looked in on Hestia, the house mother, who not only knew herself, but was beginning to have some access to her immortal powers to keep the girls in the house in line.31

It had taken Inari several lifetimes of incarnating as a human to realize that most of her "family" not only didn't realize who they were as she did, but that when they did find out -- by accident or design -- they had very little access to their godly powers at first. They had to practice and work at it to develop the skills to reach through time and use these abilities.32

Satisfied that all was well, she went to bed early -- she had a test to administer at 7am.33

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -34

10pm35

Zeus felt as though he didn't want to know the year that anything happened ever again. Enoch would be here in a bit to quiz him and he knew he wasn't ready. There was a knock on his door. He sighed and stood up to answer it.36

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -37

11pm38

"Dude. This isn't that hard. I've not even taken the dang class and I've been over these questions with you so often, I could ace this test! You just gotta concetrate, man!"39

"I am concentrating, Eddie -- sorry -- Enoch. Dates and things just don't serve a purpose for me. It's hard to convince my brain that I need 'em."40

"Let's start again..."41

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -42

1am43

"I give up, man," Enoch said with a yawn, "You've got some kind of block on remembering this stuff. I'm going to bed. I'm heading out to my girlfriend's place for the vacation tomorrow and I need to get some sleep before her parents get here to take us at noon. Later, skater."44

"Thanks anyway, Enoch. I'll just study a bit more and maybe it'll stick."45

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -46

2am47

The War of 1812 ended in...48

1812, right?49

1815.50

Why the heck is it called the War of 1812 then?!?51

This stuff is just so... useless, I mean I'm never gonna need history! The most I ever thought about History before this stupid class was [THOSE WHO DO NOT KNOW HISTORY SHALL BE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT!]...52

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -53

Afterwards, the psychologists called it a 'Psychotic Break' and said that Zachary Eustace Skytower was under too much stress.54

We all know what really happened, though. Zeus had come back to himself in a revelation. He came to the (correct) conclusion that this was his Littlest Sister's doing. His reaction was not good, though, when he tried to strike out at her and found that his abilities were... wanting.55

"That bitch."56

He stood and strode out the door, to the elevator, down to the ground floor and grabbed one of the carts that folks used to move in things when the dorms opened each semester. He then proceeded to go to each and every TV lounge and Study lounge in the large dorm -- 52 rooms -- and removed the long fluorescent bulbs from all the light fixtures in each... two to three per room, two bulbs per fixture. When the cart was full of the 250+ bulbs, he went to the elevator and re-ascended to the TV Lounge on the top floor.57

At this point, a few of the RAs had noticed his... odd behavior and were following him. He locked himself into the TV Lounge and barricaded the door. He went to the window, opened it and removed the screen and looked down on the scene. The other tower of the dorm ahead of him, the reception and mail area down and to the right, looking over the front of the parking lot. His cart of bulbs next to him, he stepped into the ledge of the window.58

Now, by this time, the RAs that were suspicious had started banging on the door. He ignored them.59

The noise and explanations meant people went outside to see if they could see him, and into the other tower to see if they could see what he was doing from there.60

So, of course, before too long the entire campus had been awakened and a crowd was gathering as he stood motionless in his window.61

Irina looked up at him and smiled. She knew he would see her and be impotent to do anything about it.62

The angry boy who would be King of the gods picked up a long white shaft and hurled his 'Thunderbolt' at the taunting sister below him.63

She moved out of the way in plenty of time, of course, but this caused the police to be called.64

Gentle readers, as the scene grew, he threw 'thunderbolts' time and again at anyone below him, shouting all the while, "I am Zeus! God of the Sky! King of the Gods! My will be done!"65

By the time the police got the door to the TV lounge open Zeus had emptied his stock of 'thunderbolts' and was shouting to the crowd below, "Hephæstus need attend your King!"66

Zachary Eustace Skytower is kept sedated for his own safety and only let loose of his straitjacket at mealtimes. He is visited often by his concerned TA from his History class from the last semester he was in college.67

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -68

These events were based upon a series of real events at the Missouri University of Science & Technology, formerly University of Missouri - Rolla. The names have been changed and the events fictionalized and adapted to fit the needs of the story. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead are purely coincidental.