32 ACHELOUS

The next day.

Athos tromped up a hill and down into a heavily wooded valley. It was the first time he'd truly ventured into the island and of all the things he expected, he didn't expect it to be this beautiful. Olive, Pine and Cypress trees cast shadows on the ground, blocking out the searing heat, while birds and cicadas filled the forest with an amiable ambience. Flowers of numerous colours lined the ground in bunches, forming little bundles of happiness, their fragrance overriding the deary scent of the mosquito-ridden, stagnant ponds he would find from time to time.

He pulled out a book with a shiny, new cover from his watch. It was a guidebook that his father had given him and the cover showed a pictorial montage of greek temples with smiling monsters next to them. The Minotaur was giving a thumbs-up while the Hydra flashed a peace sign using its nine heads. The title read: THE HERCULES GUIDE TO THE MARE NOSTRUM

His father didn't seem to care that he'd inadvertently implied that he had a roman personality, but his dad didn't seem to be one who cared for rules all that much. Herakles wasn't supposed to interact with his children in the first place, and it was one of the rules that Zeus was adamant about and one that Athos never understood. Yet his dad found a way to circumvent it or just hide it from the king of Olympus.

He didn't need the book really. He knew a lot about the river God already. Achelous was a 'Potamus', meaning river God. The spirit of the river Achelous to be exact. He had the body of a bull with the face of a human with two horns, but his dad had already torn one off when he fought the God in his youth and the other one was Athos' to take. Like father, like son.

He hiked down into the next valley and the one after that, stopping when he heard running water. He adjusted his invisible tie and summoned Leviathan. He pushed through a few pine trees before and found himself on the banks of a river. It was forty feet wide but only a few inches deep, the stone river bed easily seen due to the clear water. The rapids plunged downwards into a deep, dark swimming hole.

The flowing water had a calming vibe to it. The odd serenity it boasted made one want to let their hair down and go for a swim. The birds had ceased singing their happy songs and cicadas had halted their incessant buzzing, but he paid no heed to that. He really wanted to take off his shoes and take a nice cool swim. Athos' muscles relaxed and the tension he'd been carrying started to leave his body, but just as he was about to act on his thoughts he had the nagging feeling that something was wrong. His full-blue mask immediately morphed into a half-mask and his thoughts instantly cleared, snapping him out of the God's enchanting song. The river god liked to sing in his spare time, but his song was too beguiling for mortal ears. It would make one willingly drown in the swimming pool if not careful. He had indeed planned to switch to the half-mask if the song got too enchanting but didn't think it would be this strong. Even Piper, a daughter of Aphrodite, had broken out of the spell, but at the same time, Jason, a son of Zeus, had fallen for it. Piper's ability to charmspeak may have got something to do with her immunity.

"Oi! Stop with the song! Cut it out!", He yelled at the river. He was fully visible now thus the God could see him too. A few minutes went by and he was beginning to think that he found the wrong river, but suddenly, with a slight gurgle, the water spoke: "Ah! A visitor after so long..."

A spinning column of water emerged from the swimming hole and morphed into a bull with a human face. At the end of his taurine neck sat a relatively handsome face with curly hair and his deep eyes behind his bifocal glasses had a certain sadness to them. His skin was a light shade of blue and his beard was done in ringlets, ancient greek style. He would've looked relatively normal compared to Janus if it weren't for the fact that his head was slightly tilted to the left. It seemed that having only one horn had given him a few inconveniences.

"Forgive me, young demigod. Singing is one of the few pleasures I ha- YOU! I recognize your scent! You're his son! That mask won't hide what you are!", Achelous said, tilting his head further, his saddened eyes gaining a hint of anger and his skin turning eggplant purple.

"Why are you here? To mock me or to kill me?", he continued, stomping a hoof in indignation.

"Neither. I am here for your horn. Would you be so kind as to hand it over, bull-man?", Athos replied, pointing Leviathan at the god.

"Mock me it is. Herakles put you up to this, didn't he? And he wants my other horn?! Why? To humiliate me? If anything it is I who should loathe him! He stole my bride! Broke my pride! I did not challenge him! He did!", Achelous growled, the river's smooth currents becoming erratic. The deep pool even gained a dangerous-looking whirlpool. Herakles was probably the God's reverse scale, and for good reason.

"No, you are mistaken. 'I' want your cornucopia, not my father. He is blinded by too much hate and anger to see reason, but he is still my father", Athos said, taking out the flask.

He popped open the cap and said, "You may be right. Herakles was an asshole to you and probably still is. He is not the best role model. He has made mistakes. Hurt many people"

Athos took a long swig from the flask after removing his mask. It felt as though he was eating a soft cloud but it flowed down his throat in waves and left a salty aftertaste. He might as well have just taken a gulp of seawater. He then threw the flask on the ground, shattering it. Instantly, a wave of green energy burst out of Athos, pushing Achelous far into his lake. His blue eyes were now glowing a bright sea green.

"BUT I DON'T CARE!", He bellowed as the blessing surged into his veins, fundamentally changing his body, albeit temporarily. A power that felt primordial and unadulterated exploded out of him tinting the surroundings with green while the sounds of sea echoed, drowning out any other noise. A blood-red Oni half-mask materialised around his face and the enhanced strength he had further skyrocketed.

"Now, let's play bull-man", Athos growled, holding Leviathan with both his hands. A faint, green outline of a trident appeared behind him and the sounds of the ocean intensified. And this was but a mere drop of the Earthshaker's might.

***

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