Waking up in an old temple wasn't the most interesting thing I could imagine.
I looked around and found nothing but overgrown vegetation and, in the distance, a city.
I felt power inside my body. With a sigh, the skies closed with clouds.
Good. It seems God really did what he promised. Slowly, I began training my powers.
"Father…"
The call of a young woman made me turn. It was Artemis—the memory of my avatar made me understand that instantly.
"Ohhh, hello, daughter…" I said with a gentle smile, walking toward her. "Tell me, what have you been doing?"
"I've been hunting some monsters… They're strange," Artemis said, worried. "Some are even more feral than they should be."
"Any reason for you to think that?" I didn't know where in the timeline I'd been sent. I needed information. "Any suspicions?"
"A yellow-eyed demon has been causing trouble," Artemis said with disgust. "I've been sensing the birth of human-demon children."
"Ohhh, my daughter, I want you to find someone for me," I said, approaching her and caressing her face. She recoiled as if afraid. "Her name is Mary Campbell."
"What? She caught your interest? Are you going to take that poor woman as your personal incubator?" Artemis asked with a scowl. "You know how that ended in the past."
"I know, I know," I joked, gesturing and touching her shoulder. "I wouldn't be Zeus if I didn't have children, right? But I won't take her for myself. She's free. I just need to see how the board is set."
Artemis said nothing more and left. Despite her disappointment, she couldn't go against my orders.
Who would have imagined that the most rebellious daughter—and the one most like Zeus in attitude—would be my most loyal follower?
Artemis returned a few days later with news.
Mary wasn't married yet, and Dean wasn't around her.
Which meant she hadn't entered the story yet.
That's when I decided to play a little.
I teleported to the city Artemis mentioned, where the Campbell family was, and blended in.
I arrived near a bar where a group of hunters were gathered. I smiled and looked at an old man—Samuel Campbell.
"Well, looks like the hunt was good today," I said jokingly as I approached. The old man stared at me with hostility. "Hey, hey, I come in peace."
"Who are you, and what do you want?" Samuel growled, pointing a .40 at my head. "Answer fast if you don't want to lose your brains."
I raised my hands in surrender and grew serious. "I'm looking for a vampire. I did my best to look hateful. He's my son. He turned and has been spreading terror."
I wasn't lying. My avatar really did have a vampire son. He kidnapped a vampire and used her as a baby-making machine.
He thought monster-born children would be more powerful than normal gods or demigods and make a perfect army.
He was wrong. Those children weren't as powerful as any legendary son of Zeus. He killed them all—and the vampire too.
My avatar was despicable.
In the end, he let one live, and that one truly was causing destruction.
"Its my responsibility to eliminate him," I said solemnly.
"Tell me his name and physical description," Samuel said, his eyes less hostile now. "A father shouldn't kill a son, even if that son becomes a monster."
"No. It's my duty. I failed as a father," I said, shaking my head. "My duty is to end my son's suffering—and the suffering he's caused others."
Samuel stared at me for a few long seconds. Hunters have that strange talent of sensing when something is off, even if they can't explain what. The gun stayed steady, but his finger loosened on the trigger.
"Name?" he insisted.
"Victor," I answered without much thought. Names are masks, and I've worn worse. "He looks about twenty-something. Dark hair, light eyes… until he's hungry. Then they turn red. He's not a normal vampire."
That was enough.
"I've heard reports like that," Samuel said, holstering the gun. "Drained animals, missing people. If you really want to deal with this… you can stay."
The bar grew noisy again. Nervous laughter, clinking glasses, monster stories exaggerated by fifty percent.
Mary was there, a few seats ahead. Young. Alive. Human. Fate hadn't dirtied her yet.
That was new for me.
I felt the entire board. Invisible lines of cause and effect vibrated like harp strings. Every small choice nudged the future sideways.
That's the problem with being a god—you see too much and still get it wrong.
That night, the attack happened.
I didn't need to run. The air folded to my will and carried me to a back road, where the smell of fresh blood tore through the night.
The vampire was there, kneeling over a body, hands shaking, confused—like an animal that knows it did something wrong but doesn't understand why.
When he looked up and saw me, he froze.
"Father…?"
The word hurt more than any angel blade ever had.
The avatar's memories flooded in. The arrogance. The neglect. The abandonment.
"No," I said firmly. "I'm the one who's going to end this."
He attacked—not out of malice, but desperation.
Lightning split the sky. Thunder followed, obedient as an old dog.
It wasn't cruel. It was quick. Clean. Merciful, as far as a god still learning to be better could manage.
When it was over, Artemis emerged from the trees, silent as the moon.
"It's done," she said.
"Yes," I replied. "And that was just the first domino."
She looked at me carefully, more like a judge than a daughter.
"The yellow-eyed demon won't like this."
I smiled, feeling the sky move again in the distance. Azazel. A pawn who thought he was a player.
"Good," I said. "Let him come angry. Gods like enemies who underestimate the board."