It's been a day since I asked Ganesha's help. I'm now standing in front of a group of forty people who are all sitting on the ground, tied up with Mothra standing next to me. We're in the basement of the I Am Ganesha.
"These are all the living descendants of Daedalus." Ganesha says as he gives me a list of their names, age and affiliations.
"You went above and beyond. Thank you." I say as I read through the list.
"Don't mention it. Besides, while they were helping my people acquire this information, I also had Huginn and Muninn take care of a problem for me. You're lucky to have such capable people, hahaha." Ganesha says.
"You got some capable people yourself." I say looking at a small Pallum girl, who's keeping all Daedalus' descendants unconscious by exposing them to a toxic mist she can produce from her breath.
"Of course I have capable people! After all, I am Ganesha!"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Now let's just get to the matter at hand." I say before approaching one of the descendants.
I lift his head, facing it upwards and hold out my hand as Mothra hands me a device that looks a lot like an ice cream scoop.
I carefully place it over his right eye socket and press a button. The eye scream scoop, as I call it, snaps shut on the eye as I carefully extract it whole.
"The eyes of the accursed descendants of Daedalus act as keys to Knossos, the man-made dungeon." I say as I put the eye in a pre-prepared, magical container that keeps the eye in stasis.
"Shall I heal him sire?" Mothra asks politely with a soft, soothing voice.
"Not yet, I need some blood first." I say before I catch some of the man's blood in a bowl. "Now you can heal him."
While Mothra heals him, going so far as regenerating an entire new eye, I collect some blood from all the descendants in the same bowl.
I dip one of my fingers in the blood and draw a rune through the liquid, repeatedly, until the blood becomes a clear liquid. "Apstergeo."
As I say the word, the blood curse is cleansed away, permanently, and the liquid turns back into blood.
"Revertor." The blood turns into forty small streams as they return to the descendants through their mouths.
"Huginn, Muninn, take away their memories of Knossos." I say before two ravens fly out of my shadow and turn into humans.
They immediately get to work as Ganesha and I walk out of the room.
"So, about Freya and Loki... what are you going to do?" Ganesha asks.
"Relax, my plan is already in place. I'll give them exactly what they want. A chance to get me out of Orario, permanently, by challenging them to a wargame at the Denatus this afternoon." I say nonchalantly.
"Are you sure that's wise? They have backup from that unknown faction." Ganesha asks, a little surprised and worried.
"They're not a threat to me, nor is the faction that supports them." I say, shrugging off his concerns. "I've had my eye on Evilus for a while. Now that they're taking more direct steps against me, they won't be around for much longer."
"So it's Evilus that is helping them? That doesn't seem to worry you... Are you sure you can handle them?"
"Yes, don't worry. My plan for them is also already in place. I won't even need your help."
"Well, if you do, you know where to find me." Ganesha says as we leave the I Am Ganesha's basement and walk outside.
"Thank you. I appreciate that." I say as I get on Sleipnir's back along with Mothra and we fly off, back to Daedalus street, where Luna and the wolves are waiting.
Sleipnir lands in front of the entrance to Knossos and turns into her human form. She looks completely human, except for her equine ears and tail.
I take the container with the eye and hold it in front of the wall. Immediately the bricks start moving and rearranging themselves like the entrance to Diagon Alley, revealing a path, leading to the Labyrinth.
"You know what to do. Once they're all in Knossos, have the Xenos come up here one by one.
I'll give them all a Falna. That should allow them to turn into humans.
Meanwhile, I have a Denatus to attend."
----
About an hour later, I'm standing outside the room where the Denatus is held. I take a flask from my pocket and drink its contents in one gulp.
"Brr."
'That tastes like piss. Hecate should really change her recipe for luck potions.'
I then walk into the room on the top floor of the tower of Babel.
Inside the pristinely white room, all Gods of Orario are present.
"Ah, Fenrir, you finally deign to grace us with your presence. Spending all day cooped up with mortals in that fortress of yours... doesn't it get boring?" Freya says with a smile on her face. "Oh, wait, how foolish of me... you enjoy the company of mortals over that of your equals, you even took one as your wife."
"If you believe yourself to be my equal, I think one of your hundreds of lovers must've literally fucked your brains out." I say jokingly, causing a few of the Gods to chuckle and some even laugh out loud.
"I've had enough of your attitude, Fenrir! And I'm not alone. Most Gods here feel the same way." Freya says, clearly angry and annoyed.
"Well then, perhaps you would like the chance to kick me out.
I propose a wargame. You, along with anyone who wants me gone, versus me."
"Hold up. That doesn't sound fair." Astraea interjects.
"What are you talking about, he's the one proposing it!" Freya says. "I accept."
"As do I." Loki says with that strange smile plastered on her punchable face.
"I'll join as well." Thanatos says, surprising a few of the other gods.
"Sounds fun, I'll join." "Me too." Apate and Rudra add.
"Five against one. I like those odds." I say jokingly.
"We'll see how long you can keep up that air of superiority when our Familias grind yours to dust." Freya says.
"Oh, that reminds me... usually we choose what game to play at random, correct? How about we change it up a little."
"What do you propose?" Loki asks.
"We each write down a game on a piece of paper, put them in a bowl and then we let an impartial God choose one. Let's say... Astraea." I explain.
"Doesn't that just increase the odds against you? They can choose games that favor them, while there's only a one in six chance that your game is chosen." Astraea voices her opposition again.
"Again, he's the one who is proposing it. We accept." Freya says, smiling satisfied.
"Freya, something's not right about this. I think he's playing some kind of trick on us." Loki says, worried about my nonchalant attitude to the way things are proceeding.
"Too late to back out now, Loki. We need this." Freya says.
"Alright, write down the games on this piece of paper." Astraea says as she hands it out.
We all write down our submission and put them in the bowl.
Astraea closes her eyes as she randomly grabs one of the pieces of paper. She unfolds it and starts reading.
Immediately her eyes widen in shock. "You can't be serious?! This is insane! There's five of them, Fenrir!"
"What? What is it? What did he write?" Freya says as almost every God is sitting at the edge of their seat.
"Fenrir versus the five other Gods. A fight to the death, winner takes all."