mythological [chapter two]
Title: mythological [chapter one]
Author: babyzelo
Pairings: banghim, daejae, jongup/oc, zelo/oc.
Genre: fantasy, supernatural, au
Rating: pg-13 for language and violence.
Summary: the gods and goddesses of olympus are falling. throughout the years, each of them have decided to encase a part of their soul inside a different human being in hopes that one day, they would be redeemed again. war is fast approaching-- now, it's time for the gods to depend on their only hope.
Author's Note: the final four have been revealed! things are moving at a relatively slow pace right now and i'm sorry for that, but fear not! it'll kick off after this next chapter. none of the pairings are introduced in this chapter, but i got a bit too carried away with writing youngjae's portion. enjoy!
prologue || one || two
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chapter two.
Walking down the slick city street of downtown Seoul, Yoo Youngjae held a small box of chocolates and wore a wide grin on his face. Clutching a large, black umbrella in his other hand to shield him from the relentless rain, he hardly seemed fazed by the enormous droplets. He was on his way to the noraebang where his girlfriend works to surprise her on their six month anniversary. Youngjae didn't even know why it was called an anniversary; didn't the word anniversary come from the Latin word anni, which meant year? Shouldn't there be another word for it, like...six month-aversary? Why was he even contemplating something so trivial?
Youngjae guessed that he was just too happy and excited that he had lasted so long with his first and only girlfriend. He was still a young kid, but for the six months that they've been together, Youngjae was sure that he had found the one he loved. She was flawless in every way. Her intelligence was superior, her beauty was astounding and her sense of humor was hilarious. Even her imperfections were perfect, in his eyes, at least. Everything about her brightened his atmosphere. Youngjae was at her beck and call, ready to give his heart and soul into her.
Finally, a sign caught Youngjae's attention. 'Power! Noraebang' in bright, neon colors popped out at him in the midst of all the drab colors on the street. Quickening his pace, he entered the building with his heart pounding in his chest with anticipation. He worried about the little things. What would she do when she saw him? Would she be surprised? Would she like his gift? The lobby was spacious and branched out into different hallways that contained different karaoke rooms. Its white tile floors and walls made the lobby look more like a classy hotel than a noraebang. Closing his umbrella, Youngjae scanned the room for any sign of his girlfriend. Instead, he only saw a bored, thirty-something woman sitting at the counter. He approached her anyways. "Hello, have you seen Seungah around here?" asked Youngjae as he gave her a sunny smile. "It's our six month-aversary and I came here to surprise her with some chocolate!"
The lady, however, seemed unaffected by Youngjae's cheery disposition and monotonously replied with, "She's probably helping a customer or something. Try checking one of the rooms." Thanking her politely, Youngjae set off, walking down one of the hallways with determination. The blinds on the first room were closed. Being the curious cat he was, Youngjae opened the door anyways to find five teenaged girls in the middle of singing Face, the hit single of rookie heartthrob group NU'EST. The adolescents squealed in surprise when their rendition was interrupted by a random boy. Bowing his head multiple times and apologizing profusely, he shut the door immediately and continued on his search. Trying the next room, he opened the door to an empty karaoke room.
Third time's the charm, he thought as he approached the final door in the hallway. The blinds were tightly shut on this one as well. When Youngjae opened the door, he dropped the chocolate box and his umbrella on the floor upon seeing his girlfriend. The gleeful look on his face evaporated and turned into a look of utter shock and horror. And the pain. God, the pain. It was as if someone was literally choking him. Suffocating him. Squeezing the very soul out of him. Youngjae could do nothing but feel stupid and hurt as he watched his girlfriend, his beautiful, amazing, sensitive, wonderful, perfect girlfriend cheating on him with another guy. When their lips broke apart and she looked at him with her not-so-innocent eyes, Youngjae felt a hundred pounds of weight pummel into his heart when he used to only feel flutters just by making eye contact.
"Youngjae-ah," she broke the silence and hesitated for a moment, probably to make up some stupid excuse as to why her lips were making contact with another guy's. Perhaps she was going to tell him that she fell on him and they both had some sort of weird glue on their lips. Perhaps she was going to tell him that she was being controlled by some unseen, higher being and this was all a game. Perhaps she was going to tell him that this was all a dream. But no, she didn't tell him anything; she just sat there and said his name again. "Youngjae-ah..."
Shaking his head, Youngjae mentally asked himself why he did it. Was he trying to rid himself of that image or was he denying that this ever happened to him? He didn't know why, so he just continued to shake his head and back out of the room. His perception of life had changed in just a split second and he was sure that it was going to be hard for him to even breathe for Pete's sake. Youngjae felt the tears well up in his eyes and ran the hell out of there before she could see him break down.
"Wait! Youngjae, wait!"
He could hear her scream his name out, but the last thing he ever wanted to do was go back to her. How could he? How could someone just take someone's heart and smash it to a pulp just like that? Youngjae had waited eighteen years-- eighteen Goddamn years-- for a girl like her to come along and make him fall in love just like that, but he wasn't expecting her to make him fall off a cliff. The receptionist at the lobby looked up, mildly interested, but Youngjae didn't even take note of her existence. Here he was, number one in the most prestigious school in all of Seoul, considered to be one of the smartest people his generation has ever known, and yet he was too fucking stupid to realize that his love life was too good to be true. Youngjae felt dumber than dirt now.
As soon as he escaped from the cursed noraebang, it was then he realized that he had left his umbrella inside. Well, he certainly wasn't going to go back anytime soon. Youngjae didn't even care that his clothing was getting soaked; in a way, he felt like he was cleansing himself from her. Both the raindrops and his tears blurred his vision. He didn't even care if he ran into street lamps, fire hydrants and people; it seemed like his entire world was falling apart. Turning into a narrow alley, he sought shelter in what looked to be an abandoned auto garage. Youngjae leaned backwards on the cold, brick wall and made no attempt to muffle his sobs. It wasn't like anyone was here to see him as this huge, blubbering mess anyways.
Or was there? Youngjae may have been either blind, deaf or just too depressed to notice the boy on the far side of the not-so-abandoned auto garage roll out from under a rusting 1978 Chevy Camaro. He didn't know much about cars, but Youngjae knew enough that Chevrolet did not sell their cars in Korea until 2001. For a moment, Youngjae wondered about how this car made its way into the country, let alone the garage. But anyways, back to the boy. His face looked about fifteen or sixteen, but his height was unlike a normal fifteen or sixteen year old's. In addition to the unusual height, the boy also had bubblegum pink hair-- did he have a rebellious streak, maybe? Or maybe he lost a bet. Grease and oil coated his face and clothing like war paint. Youngjae couldn't really see anything else due to his puffy, red eyes and stinging tears, but he did notice that the large boy was coming closer to him.
Youngjae thought the boy came closer to comfort him, or at least tell him to get out. But alas, no, he didn't. Instead, he said, "Whoa, man, how'd you find this place?" in an awestruck tone. Too dumbfounded to even continue crying, Youngjae stared at him. It was rude to not answer, so he answered with an almost incoherent, "I don't know." The kid tried to wipe some grease off his face with the heel of his hand, but only succeeded in smearing it even more. Grabbing something off a metal hook, he moved closer to Youngjae and wordlessly handed him an item. It was a dishrag. Besides the part where the boy held it, the cloth was clean. Accepting it gratefully, Youngjae dabbed at his eyes and suddenly began to feel conscious about his image. This boy must have thought he was a lunatic of some sort.
"Look, I-I can expla--" Youngjae started, but the sound of scrap metal falling over interrupted him. Both males whipped their heads towards the source of the noise and what they saw had them doubting their vision. A man had stepped forth from the junk heap and was leisurely making his way towards the two. His face was arguably the ugliest thing that Youngjae had ever seen in his life. The man had a built figure with enormous, calloused hands; one of them held a giant hammer. His beard was rough-looking and haggard with little scraps of metal stuck to it. That wasn't it, however. Sauntering towards them with a graceful gait was a majestic looking woman with cruel-looking eyes. She wore a shining Greek war helmet with red horsehair on top, her auburn locks flowing from underneath. The woman was wearing full battle armor and carried a tall spear in her hand. A snowy owl was perched on her shoulder, eyeing both Youngjae and the young boy next to him. As Youngjae studied the two newcomers more, his mind began to recognize who they were. However, he concluded that the possibilitiy that those people were who he thought they were was virtually impossible.
"How are you people getting into my family's garage?" asked the boy, a look of confusion etched on his face. The man boomed out a hearty laugh as he stared at the kid with twinkling eyes. Chuckling, he swung his hammer over his shoulder and grinned at puzzled boy. The woman's eyes flicked impatiently from the man to Youngjae. "Well, you better get on with it, Hephaestus. Unless you'd like me to explain the dire situation to the children, and I'm sure that the little one won't be able to understand," she said sharply. Hephaestus. The woman had called him Hephaestus. Youngjae was sure that he knew who these people were now, although his brain could not find a logical explanation for how or why it was happening.
"Alright, alright," the man called Hephaestus said, then cleared his throat. "Well, I suppose you have a million little questions running through your heads now, don't you? They will be answered in due time. But for now, let's cut to the chase. I assume you are familiar with the Olympians, right?" His gaze flickered to Youngjae, who nodded his head quickly. "Then you must know who we are," concluded Hephaestus.
"Well, th-that woman called you Hephaestus," stuttered Youngjae, forgetting that his face probably looked like it was stung by bees, "then, that must mean that she must be Athena. You...you don't exist. You're myths!" Youngjae wanted to believe his words, he really did. Today was so surreal. Maybe he was dreaming, because if he was, he'd feel a lot better. Recent events would have made a lot more sense.
"That's my boy," Athena nodded approvingly, earning another questioning look from Youngjae. Hephaestus continued, "Right, we're supposed to be myths. That's what the other humans think. We, however, are not myths, as you can see. And hear. And feel." Hephaestus strode over to the tall boy and ruffled his pink hair. The kid's eyes widened and shrank back against the wall. "Don't worry, Junhong, I don't bite. Much."
Roaring with laughter, Hephaestus regained composure once again. "To make a long story short, we need your help. Us Olympians have each put a part of our souls into you when you were born. We chose you because we thought you had potential to help us in our time of need. Now is that time, and your fate has been sealed. Junhong, I have chosen you to house a part of my soul. In addition to fine craftsmanship, you have also gained the power to control fire. Use it well on your quest. Youngjae, Athena has chosen you. Your superior intelligence will surely be a huge help and you will soon find out how much of an asset you are on the battlefield." Without stopping to let the two boys comprehend the information, Hephaestus added, "The surviving others are already looking for you. I suggest you start looking for them as well. They're all ovoer Seoul, you know."
"Wait, wait, wait," pink-haired Junhong said. "You...you just expect us to believe this? I don't buy it. I think you're crazy. Both of you." Rolling her eyes, Athena turned to face him. "Would you believe it if I told you that your life was on the line, boy? We have already chosen your fate; you cannot change it. Unless you would want to end up dead, like several before you, I think the wise choice here would be to listen to what we tell you."
"Dead...?" Junhong trailed. Letting out an impatient sight, Athena commanded, "Hephaestus, prove yourself to your chosen one. I'm literally wasting away here. Yoo Youngjae, I bid you good luck on your journey. Do not let the gods down." With that, Athena shimmered and disappeared in a haze. Hephaestus smirked and snapped his fingers, instantly igniting his fingertips on fire. Snapping them again, a tinkering sound could be heard and the roar of the Camaro's engine came to life. Youngjae and Junhong stared at him in disbelief. Chuckling, Hephaestus began to fade away as well. "Good luck, boys. We are counting on you."
Youngjae looked at Junhong, who was entranced by the running car. This was all so unrealistic. Just this morning, he was getting ready to visit his girlfriend in a carefree, shameless mood. Now, he was heartbroken, drenched and expected to help save the gods of Olympus from imminent doom. Junhong looked away from the car and excitement crept up on his face as he said, "So, we're going on a quest? This totally beats being grounded this weekend!" Youngjae let out a sigh as he ran a hand through his wet, blonde hair. "But I never agreed to doing anything like this..."
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Wandering around the arcade with his pockets bursting with coins, Moon Jongup debated on which video game to play first. He knew that he was supposed to be studying for exams this weekend, but school really wasn't his strongest suit. His father had given him money for food and bus fare to go to his weekly cram school, but he could afford to miss one week. After all, a D+ was a passing grade in history, right? It was a step up better than his previous semester grade, which was an F. His father wasn't very pleased with it, though. The point was that Jongup was showing some sign of improvement.
Spotting a brand new war game, a smile crept up on Jongup's face. He knew what he was playing. Putting a coin into the machine, he grabbed the handle of the machine gun and began to play. Jongup always got competitive with things like games and contests. To make up for his lack in education, he was an exceptional dancer, as well as a spectacular gamer. When he really likes to something, he will direct all of his hard work and time to perfect it. He didn't even notice how much time went by until he realized that he was still playing the game and accumulating a high score. Other arcade-goers gathered around him to take a look at this feat.
After he had beaten the game's previous high score by a whopping 500,000 points, Jongup wandered towards the back of the arcade where there were less people. Spying a brand new virtual reality game in the corner, he wandered near it. Why the game was all the way in the corner where no one could see it, he didn't know. Maybe it was malfunctioning. Maybe it was just a prototype. Whatever it was, Jongup was curious. He walked towards it and examined the outside. The machine was a huge box, enough to fit two people. Judging by the pictures on the outside, apparently, it was supposed to simulate a zombie apocalypse. Eh, why not, thought Jongup as he went inside.
The interior was dark, save for the giant screen in front of him that displayed the letters 'ATTACK OF THE UNDEAD' in blood. Two handguns were snuggled into the holsters in front of him, waiting to be picked up. Selecting the light green one, Jongup put in two coins and prepared to begin the game. Suddenly, the curtains were pulled back and there stood a girl around his age, peering in. She looked surprised to see him and apologized profusely. "Sorry! Didn't see you in there! Sorry, sorry!"
This was a game meant for two people, Jongup thought. Plus, with two people working together, they might progress further into the game. "It's fine! We can play together, if you want! Come on," invited Jongup. The girl peeked in hesitantly, then joined him on the bench. She grabbed the orange gun from its holster and studied it briefly. Giving him a grateful smile, she said, "Thanks. I always go to this arcade, but this is the first time I've seen this game here. It looks challenging." The girl had a roguish grin on her face as she inserted her coins into the machine as well. Jongup was happy; at least she actually seemed like she'd try to play.
The first wave of zombies came out and both of them raised their guns in preparation. Jongup was amazed at the girl's skill. She was able to hit every single zombie that came at her with utmost accuracy. For the first time in a while, Jongup felt intimidated by her presence. It wasn't like she looked the part, either. No matter how many times he tried to best her in points, she always came out on top. That pissed him off a little, but he wasn't going to show it yet. Still, how is he getting less points than a girl? Holding down the trigger, he let loose a whole range of bullets before realizing that he was just wasting his ammo.
Furrowing his eyebrows, Jongup shot glares at the girl through his peripheral vision. Of course, she was having too much fun blasting zombie heads to see them. As soon as the first level was beaten (he had lost to her badly since she had 10000 points and 98% accuracy, he only had 4600 points and 26% accuracy), the screen had turned off and the booth was plunged into momentary darkness. Both Jongup and the girl gave out cries of exasperation and Jongup even kicked the machine. "That's not fair! What a stupid game," pouted Jongup and huffed. However, the screen pixelated and began to show two distinct images.
The graphics were so realistic that Jongup wasn't sure if they were part of the game or actually there. A heavyset man with wild, fiery eyes and crazy black hair glared at them from the game's screen. He wore black armor that smoked and carried a sword in his right hand. In other words, Jongup would never want to pick a fight with him. The woman that came with him looked a bit more forgiving, but something about here still warned him that she wasn't a force to be reckoned with. Golden locks fell in ringlets and they framed her face, giving her an air of innocence. However, she had a bow and arrow slung over her shoulder and she wore a pure white toga. And behind her...was that a deer? Jongup had no idea what the hell was going on here, and apparently, neither did the girl next to him.
"Um, I'm pretty sure this isn't part of the video game and that kind of freaks me out," she said calmly, but aimed the plastic gun anyways as if it could actually help her. The big man looked at her and roared out a harsh laugh, then wore a nasty grin on his face. Video games weren't supposed to do this, were they? Where were the zombies? The woman held up a hand to quiet the large man, then spoke in a soft voice. "Children, I know this seems unreal, but please listen to me. My name is Artemis, the Greek goddess of the Hunt and the Moon. The man standing next to me is Ares, the god of war. All of us are in grave danger, even the two of you."
"I'm out of here," the girl sitting next to him announced, but when she tried to move the curtains aside, she couldn't. Ares boomed, "Sit back down, girl, or I'll chop your head off! We don't have much time!" Shaken, she sat back down and stared at the screen with widened eyes. Artemis gave her a more sympathetic look. Jongup had no idea what was going on. All he wanted to do was play some video games, but instead, he was being forced to stay inside a video game by...Greek gods? Did this even make sense?
"Listen up, punks!" Ares shouted. "The gods of Olympus are losing their powers and we don't know WHY! Now, it's up to YOU punks to figure out WHY! We aren't as powerful as before, so that's why we put parts of our souls into YOU guys! Now, you don't have a choice in whether you want to accept this quest or not because YOU ARE GOING TO DO IT! Understood?"
"What are we supposed to do?" Jongup asked, curious about this quest business.
"THAT'S THE SPIRIT!" Ares bellowed. "Now, punk, here's the deal. There are a few others like you and they're going to try and find you as soon as they can. Once you all are together, you're supposed to find out WHAT is draining our powers! Hermes' kid is your token, but he can only lead the way if all you punks are together! You are supposed to get together and pretty much SAVE THE WORLD! If you don't, you DIE! Understand?"
Both Jongup and the girl wore dumbfounded expressions on their faces, so Artemis took it from there. "Each of you have your own special abilities, believe it or not. Like Ares said, you must find the other chosen ones and save the Olympians, or else the world is doomed. It may sound like a cliché, but that would be the least of your worries if our power gets in the wrong hands. Jongup, Ares has encased some of his soul into you. That means that you have a part of the war god inside of you. Haven't you noticed why you're exceptionally good at violence and physical-related things rather than smarts?"
"W...well, you're right," Jongup agreed half-heartedly, but Ares turned to Artemis.
"ARE YOU CALLING ME A DIMWIT!?" he howled.
"Ares, now is not the time and place," Artemis waved her hand dismissively and turned to the girl next to Jongup, who gripped the edge of the seat so hard, her knuckles turned white. "And you, my dear Miyu. I have chosen you to shelter some of my soul. Your excellent marksmanship and stealthiness will help you greatly on your excursion. I know I have chosen well, so please do not let me down. Ares and I cannot stay any longer, in fear that more of our powers may be drained. Just remember that we will always be beside you and rooting for you."
Before Jongup nor Miyu could ask any more questions, the two figures pixelated and disappeared. Excited, Jongup gave her a smile. "Wow, we're just like warriors! Isn't this cool? I didn't know we had souls of gods inside of us!" Shaking her head, Miyu backed out of the video game booth. "I'm sorry, I don't buy this. I think I need to go home and lay down or something. Sheltering her soul, my ass..."
Jongup was about to call her back and at least try to talk with her about what had happened, but all of a sudden, his cellphone rang. Taking the vibrating device out of his pocket, his heart stopped momentarily when he saw the caller ID. 'Father', it said in huge letters. Should he answer it or not? He debated with himself internally for a few seconds before decided to deal with his problems head-on. Taking a deep breath, he answered with a, "Hello?"
"Moon Jongup," his father said in a stern voice. "I just called the cram school to see if you got there safely since it's pouring like crazy out there. They told me you didn't show up to class today. You are going to come home right now. You, sir, are in very big trouble."