- Poseidon -
Poseidon looked up at the rain that was pelting his face. Behind his eyes were the memories of his and his family's first real battle against Chronos. The confident shout of victory from Zeus's mouth. Hades's sigh of relief. Hera's hug around Zeus. But most of all, the look of absolute terror that had spread across everyone's faces when Chronos's body started to reform.
Everyone had frozen in place with fear, except for Zeus. The lightning god's decisiveness in that moment forever cemented him as the future king of Olympus. The following battle nearly took the lives of Poseidon and his brothers.
It had been Hera's idea to leave Chronos weak but not kill him. Hades had suggested imprisoning Chronos in Tartarus. Poseidon's memories of the battle were crystal clear while what came after was hazy. Discussions of hiding Chronos's existence from all non-family. Zeus's recounting of the battle and the fear on the newly-informed family member's faces.
The centuries went on and Chronos stayed alive. Zeus would use Chronos as a means of stress relief, along with trying to get Poseidon to do the same. Poseidon's first visit to Chronos was his last. The horror of watching his father reform from blood and guts was too much for him.
Everything had just barely been holding together for Poseidon. A tipping point, one that would send him over the edge mentally, was the war with Heliopolis. Ragnarok was sweeping through the world, infecting every land with war, every inch of ground with battles. While lessers fought gods in the more northern parts of the Otherworld, Olympus seemed to stay peaceful.
That peace came from Zeus's unrelenting control of Olympus. Zeus took the throne through betrayal, he was never going to risk the same being done to him. He wasn't a tyrant, nor was he benevolent. The best word for it would be "involved."
Uprisings, dissension, anything that could lead to some kind of revolution against Zeus were handled thoroughly. Poseidon had always stayed out of Zeus's affairs, political and otherwise. He simply wanted to enjoy his life; partying with Dionysus, watching coliseum matches with Ares, or even just eating whatever new human recipe Persephone had made.
Poseidon's life had been the simplest of the three brothers. When the fervor of Ragnarok started to spread, he felt the least prepared.
- (Past) Zeus and Poseidon -
"Why are we going to war with them?!" Poseidon questioned Zeus.
"That land should be ours," Zeus said arrogantly. "I was barely okay with the idea of sharing it, but now? They're using this time as an excuse."
"Who CARES?!" Poseidon shouted louder than he meant to.
Zeus glared at Poseidon. "We can't appear weak now. The loss of Ares..."
"Should teach us why we shouldn't do this," Poseidon interrupted. "The Heliopolis gods are not weak, a war with them should be avoided unless absolutely necessary."
Zeus clicked his tongue. "You're only saying that because you're afraid, and you're only afraid because you've been living a soft life. You don't even visit our father because of that fear of yours."
"That's not..." Poseidon mumbled.
"I didn't come for your opinion," Zeus sighed. "Either join me and the others on the battlefield come time, or leave Olympus."
- (Present) Poseidon -
Poseidon's thoughts were on the war with Heliopolis. The image of Hera's soul being ripped out by Anubis. The disgusting feeling in Poseidon's head as he wondered if Anubis had the ability to truly kill Chronos.
During the war with Heliopolis, there was an uprising in Olympus. Even though the Minotaurs led the battle, there was a feeling of someone else controlling things. Zeus left the battle against Heliopolis to squash the rebellion, which caused a distaste for most Olympian soldiers that were still fighting. During the rebellion, Poseidon's wife was killed.
'Amphi...' Poseidon mourned.
The war with Heliopolis was ended by a third party. Cthulhu, or more specifically, Cthulhu in Jupiter's body. The Eldritch leader told the two sides he didn't want either of them to own the land between the three territories, and that if they kept fighting, he would join their war. At that point, it was an easy decision for both sides. Both had lost enough.
In the same moment that the truce was called, it was as if both sides questioned the size of the land they were fighting over. Ancients, tens of thousands of soldiers, dead for what felt like nothing to both sides' leaders.
'If only you had stepped in sooner,' Poseidon thought about Cthulhu.
(Past)
The war had been Poseidon's breaking point, mentally. When he returned home to grieve his losses, he heard something. Chronos' voice, mocking him for his weakness. He knew there was no chance that Chronos had escaped Tartarus, but he didn't want to check either. He had convinced himself that so long as he never saw Chronos, the god was as good as dead.
Time went on, and Poseidon continued to hear Chronos' voice. He would even see images of Chronos, mid-reformation, glaring at him. These voices and images stayed with him no matter where he went. He was convinced that he needed to find someone who could properly kill the god if he was to be free of this curse.
He left Olympus, telling his brothers he wanted to travel to clear his head. He knew he needed to find someone powerful who he could also trust wouldn't tell anyone of Chronos' existence. As time passed, it seemed impossible. Some gods seemed capable but nowhere near trustworthy enough. He had thought to ask Death but the conspicuous nature of Death at the time removed that option.
Poseidon's searches drew the attention of a certain being. This being had revealed to Poseidon that they knew about Chronos and that they had a way to deal with him. Poseidon at the time was desperate, so he heard the being out.
The being gave him an offer. All Poseidon had to do was free Chronos. If Poseidon did that, the being promised Chronos' end. Poseidon's refusal was loud and immediate. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. He left, but not before the being told him that the offer was always available.
When Poseidon returned home, Zeus was waiting with questions. Zeus demanded to know what Poseidon was doing. Poseidon, finally having had enough of it all, told the truth. He told them what he had been seeing and hearing. Zeus assumed it must have been some kind of magic on Chronos' part. Poseidon wanted to argue but felt if he did he might dig himself deeper into suspicion.
Poseidon lived with the illusions of his father tormenting him. His travels showed him that no matter how far away he got, he couldn't escape the curse. He tried his best to convince Zeus to find a god that could deal with Chronos. When that failed, he turned to Hades to help him convince Zeus. Hades refused, not wanting to start any conflicts with Zeus.
No matter which family member Poseidon asked, none would help him. He felt trapped, desperate, and above all, betrayed. He resolved to take the being's deal. But first, he needed to change himself.
Poseidon's change was immediately noticeable to his family. He went from a god that enjoyed casual partying and having fun, to a facsimile of Zeus. He would enter coliseum matches and proudly show off his strength, all while dealing with his illusions of his father.
It was during this change when he had a match with a certain hot-headed archangel who looked down on water magic. Centuries turned into millennia, until one day, Poseidon met with the being from before and accepted their offer. He was finally ready to betray his family if it meant he could be free of Chronos.
Everything Poseidon had changed about himself, reverted the moment he saw his father in person. All those millennia acting strong and arrogant seemed to fade away once he saw the real Chronos. Lucifer's provocations only made it worse, sending him back to his old mentality.
- (Present) Underworld -
Lucifer spoke to Hades and Death while glaring at Chronos, "I'll aim for his legs; Hades, the eyes; Death, the arms."
Hades and Death nodded.
["Letting an angel give you orders?"] Chronos laughed. ["The boy is nothing compared to his father. He-"]
Death ran in first, followed by Lucifer. Chronos shot a wave of blue fire that was redirected by Lucifer who was now running in front of Death. As time stopped, Death got back in front of Lucifer and swung his scythe at Chronos's arm.
While that fight continued outside, Yvere continued her attempted resuscitation of Lao. Finally, she felt his heartbeat. She started healing him quicker than she meant to. The pain caused Lao to clench his hands, breaking Dimitri's hand in the process.
"Wha...hap...ou...si" Lao's voice was barely audible.
"Luce is winnin'," Peter reassured. "Just focus on stayin' conscious."