- Zeus -
Zeus told Eros to lead Lucifer to one of the large tables near the back of the banquet hall. He was going to gather beings at the party to join them. He went around ordering various party guests to join them at the table.
"I want you to sit there and pretend like you're interested in whatever the fall-, um, Lucifer has to say," Zeus said to the beings he was forcing to join.
Zeus hadn't forgotten what Death told him, he had just pushed it to the back of his mind during the coliseum match. During his flight to the banquet hall, he had thought of ways to make up for what happened to Lucifer. He knew gifts wouldn't work. Lying was out of the question. He ultimately decided that even if it was disingenuous, the fact that he forced beings to show respect to Lucifer would be seen as an act of good faith, or he hoped at least.
'Let's hope the boy actually participated in the war and wasn't just a bystander watching Death do all the work,' Zeus thought to himself with a sigh. 'The fact that they even call it a "war" only diminishes the weight of actual war.'
Zeus looked up at the Ares statue with sadness. The very word "war" was rarely brought up anymore on Olympus. Even talking about the Demon War was mostly done in hushed tones.
'Let's get this over with,' Zeus walked to the back of the banquet hall.
- Lucifer, Zeus, Eros -
Lucifer was sitting at a large round table with Zeus on his left and Eros on his right. The rest of the seats were filled with a mix of minotaurs, satyrs, nymphs, and figures whose form was hidden in a blue cloak. Everyone except for Zeus was leaning in as Lucifer told stories of the Demon War.
"So the demon, Jahkar, had an eldritch contract. It had allowed him to use more magic at once than someone of his skill level would normally be able to, along with the increase in his strength. His brother Molakar was wearing false void metal armor, so Kahvis was struggling to damage them while I was holding off Jahkar."
One blue-cloaked figure decided to ask a question, "How were you able to hold out against Jahkar's barrage of flame?"
Lucifer shrugged. "Most of my training with fire magic involved weaving it around my body, so controlling his flames wasn't difficult."
"False void metal?" A nymph asked.
"Do you not know what that is?" Lucifer asked.
Most of the beings shook their heads no.
"Real void metal is an alloy," Lucifer began explaining. "It's made from combining the black sands of Han'ei and the draconic ore found in the Valley. False void metal is actually called Almyric. It makes strong, temporary armor. It's not as durable, and nowhere near as long-lasting, as actual void metal. Anyways, the almyric armor that Molakar was wearing was giving Kahvis trouble."
"What about the unknown's, uh, Kahvis' abilities?" Zeus asked.
"What about them?" Lucifer questioned Zeus's intentions. "They have all basic affinities. It's probably why they were given such a high rank right away."
Nothing Lucifer was saying hadn't already been known by most well-informed beings. There was only one thing Lucifer knew about Kahvis that others didn't but he wasn't going to reveal that to Zeus.
"Anyways..." Lucifer continued telling his story.
Time passed and the beings at the table were enthralled with Lucifer's story. Lucifer himself didn't think much of his contribution to the war given how much Death and Saint had actually done. Even though he wanted to leave, there was a part of him that enjoyed the enthusiastic attention of the beings he was telling the story to.
"So is your flame like Lord Hades?" A blue-cloaked figure asked.
Zeus glared at the being and was about to move before Lucifer assured him it was alright.
"No," Lucifer said. "It burns far hotter than a normal flame. Nothing more to it than that."
The beings at the table, Zeus included, were filled with questions about Lucifer's blue fire but were hesitant to ask. Lucifer's explanation seemed purposefully light. Asking about magic was already considered rude enough but to ask for further details on someone's magic was akin to challenging them to a duel.
'Even I don't know why the fire is blue,' Lucifer thought to himself. 'Her fire wasn't blue even though it was more than hot enough. Why are those flames blue? Is it Chaos magic? Why didn't I have it my entire life then?'
Eros slapped Lucifer on the back. "Did you forget what happened next?"
Lucifer looked up at the curious faces at the table. "Hmm? Oh, right. So eventually we retreated to Bolotano..."
Lucifer's explanation of the rest of his part in the Demon War was half-hearted in tone while his mind filled with questions about his own magic. It wasn't that he hadn't had these thoughts in the past, but more that he usually didn't give much weight to them. As far as magical inconsistencies went, his ability to create blue flames that burned hotter than normal ones wasn't high on the list.
"Death, Saint, and Kahvis were the real standouts in the war," Lucifer said. "Kahvis could have just slaughtered the demons if they wanted to but saw the opportunity to make more allies. Death and Saint, well, I'm sure I don't need to explain."
"No no, please do," The minotaur opposite Lucifer said enthusiastically.
Zeus stood up, ready to force the minotaur out. All the beings at the table stared up at Zeus, worried about what was going to happen. Lucifer tapped his fingers on Zeus's arms and mouthed "It's fine." Zeus sat back down.
"There's just nothing to tell," Lucifer shrugged. "Death rode his uništi and tore through the demon army like a wildfire through dry grass. Saint supported Kahvis's soldiers with the same speed and effectiveness as a dozen or more healers."
'Death, Saint, Satan, this new god, Kahvis,' Zeus questioned Lucifer in his head. 'How you find yourself allied with such powerful beings, I'll never understand.'
Eros put his arm around Lucifer. "You give so much credit to those three for the war but I think you're underselling yourself," He looked around the table. "Isn't that right?"
Most of the beings nodded in agreement with Eros' statement, with Zeus nodding after everyone else. When Zeus had gathered the beings beforehand, telling them to listen intently and fake interest if they must, he never would have guessed the beings would have a genuine interest in Lucifer's story. Even he found himself somewhat curious about Lucifer's part in the war.
Lucifer had figured that most of the beings at the table were just actors commanded by Zeus to placate him. Much like Zeus, he hadn't expected the beings to show genuine interest. Even though he did have a small feeling of joy from the beings' curious faces, he still wanted to leave and meet up with his group.
"Sorry everyone," Lucifer turned to Zeus, "and you Lord Zeus, but I really should be rejoining my group in the Underworld. I don't want to show disrespect to Lord Hades."
'If only you could act like that all the time,' Zeus mocked Lucifer mentally. "Of course!" he said loudly. "But please do consider telling us any more stories you have before leaving the territory."
The other beings at the table looked dejected by the fact that Lucifer was leaving. They wanted to hear more, but none would dare speak up to ask him out of respect.
"Do you still have a key?" Lucifer asked Eros.
"Sure you don't want to take the ferry?" Eros responded.
"Very," Lucifer pulled Eros's arm off his back and stood up.
- Zeus -
"Sorry for the r-rudeness," The minotaur from before apologized to Zeus.
Zeus spoke in a threatening tone. "Hopefully you don't make the same mistake again," He stood up.
As Zeus was walking away from the table he could hear the beings at the table whispering to each other about Lucifer's story. He found the excitement in their voices frustrating. It reminded him of the faces of the coliseum's spectators at the beginning of Lucifer's and Poseidon's fight. He hadn't seen such excitement on the faces of his citizens in a long time.
He walked back to the statue of Ares and read the inscription at the bottom.
'This statue represents one of the many victories Lord Ares earned for Olympus. Even in death, he will always be our god of war.'
Zeus decided he shouldn't waste any more time at the party. He left to check on Poseidon. He felt a sudden wave of unease.
- Death and Hades -
The other members of the group had left Death and Hades to discuss outside of the palace, while Persephone stood at the top of the steps with Cerberus. Death was scowling at what he had just been told by Hades.
"What do you mean, off?" Death said in a more threatening tone than he meant to.
Hades looked at the floor as he spoke. "It's hard to say exactly..." He scratched the back of his head. "Poseidon's been acting as he did in the old days. The very, old days."
"Any problems with the titans?" Death asked.
Hades flinched. "N-not that I've seen."
'What was that?' Death questioned in his mind. "Well, I'll try to not make things worse. I want us all to enjoy our time here."