How-not to be an Olympian God!

As Alex had perceived earlier, there was one such temple nearby, down the hillside.

Hence, he climbed down the hill and started walking towards his destination.

As the terrain got flatter, it also got more humid and moist and the vegetation here was more lush and varied, with grasses growing taller and a rainbow of flowers decorating the land.

The floral smell from earlier was diluted by various pleasant scents and Alex's lungs were very thankful after all that walking around the volcanic hellscape of Asphodel.

*Sssssssss*

Alex picked up on the sound of rushing water nearby and found a small river streaming through the place and a forest ecosystem around it.

'The water looks so clear and pristine...' Alex wanted to take a sip, but he ultimately decided against it.

As with everything in the Underworld, he couldn't know what a small peaceful-looking river could be hiding.

He shrugged and resumed his walk.

Going through the thin forestry of the woodlands, a reasonably big structure came into sight.

It was a very similar temple in architecture to the ones he found in the various acropolises, except it was constructed of a reflective and glowing green jade that merged with the environment.

It was gorgeous and he found himself gulping at this heavenly architecture, mainly as a result of 'Aestheticism' that he had gained from Aphrodite.

After he looked around carefully, he entered the temple.

The interiors of the temple were as pretty as the outside, and the spacious hall he was now in was heavily ornamented and organized.

However, a peculiar smell suddenly assaulted his sense of smell.

It was...sweet, and at the same time, sour and funky.

'This is the smell of wine...?' Alex concluded that it was alcohol. He followed the source of the smell, through the brightly lit corridors of the temple and entered through a door, finding himself in the room where the smell was strongest.

As he took in his surroundings, he was astonished.

'This is...chaotic.' He thought to himself as he gulped.

There were a lot of people, and most seemed to be heavily drunk.

Some of them were painting sluggishly on canvas, others were writing and one of them was even sculpting with a sharp chisel, though she was drunk.

'The sculptor should be careful with that tool..'

This was a fiesta of art and alcohol, and an artist's haven, with ideas and arts streaming about the drunken room.

Alex figured these people wouldn't help him much with finding the directions to the eastern temple so he approached the only small group that looked decent and sober enough.

Three men were sitting around a small table and engaged in a discussion.

"A life without the quest of wisdom is a trivial one, humanity was granted a brain to use it, and even as the dead souls that we are, I believe that we still have much to learn about..."

As he heard these 'wise' words, Alex turned around, concluding these people were also drunk.

As he was going to leave, however, he felt someone grabbing his hand.

He turned and was it was one of the men from earlier, and he spoke, "You, why do you have on you the scent of our goddess, Lady Athena?"

'What.' Alex was a bit confused and broke free from the man's grasp.

"Ah, I apologize, I have neglected introductions. I am of the name Aristotle." The man introduced himself as Aristotle.

'Aristotle..? The greatest philosopher of Ancient Greece?' Alex was surprised by the familiar name and pondered.

It was possible he was the same philosopher that he knew from his time, as he learned that even Alexander The Great once existed in this world.

"I'm Alex, Athena's son." He introduced himself back.

The two other men who were sat stood up and came by.

They introduced themselves as Plato and Socrates, respectively.

"What business does the child of our muse and goddess have in Elysium?" Socrates asked him.

"I need to find the easternmost temple of this realm, could you help me with that?" Alex replied and requested.

The three looked at each other, nodded and then Plato spoke up.

"We can guide you. However, could you answer one question?"

Alex nodded.

"What is the meaning of life to you?" Plato questioned him.

Alex fell into deep thought, concentrating on the question. After a short while, he found an answer within himself and said, "I'm not sure I have found one yet, however, I am on the lookout for any insights on it and I think it could change with time."

Alex himself felt like he avoided the question entirely, but unexpectedly, Socrates started praising him.

"Willingness to evolve and openness to new ideas, no wonder you are Lady Athena's child. Remember, hubris will get you nowhere, and only through searching unconsciously for new wisdom will you be able to grasp the untold mysteries of the world. The answer is your own to make."

Alex thought these were valuable insights and thanked Socrates.

The latter shrugged and said, "You were searching for east? It's in the direction where the two forests bordering the river and the hills converge, forming a passage that will lead you east."

Alex thanked them and said goodbye, leaving the premises of the temple.

"Send our greeting to Lady Athena!" The three exclaimed as they were sending him off.

Alex nodded and looked around.

'The place where the two forests converge...?'

_______________________________________________________________________

Alex struggled to follow the lead but after carefully analyzing the entire surroundings, he finally found it.

Going through the forest, he walked silently as the buzzing sound of fireflies rang out.

This place was lacking sunlight and was very different from the mortal realm, but it was heavenly and elusive in its own way.

With such thoughts going through his head, he navigated through the dense forest.

Following a mindless walk, he found a clearing in the middle of the forest.

On one side, there was a...coast?

The waters stretched soundlessly, almost like they were in the middle of an ocean, but it couldn't be.

'Perhaps the Styx river is just so wide?' Alex pondered on it as he was surprised that Elysium was actually an island, potentially in the middle of the Underworld River.

Putting that aside, bordering the coast, a temple that looked the same as the one from earlier stood out.

If he was right, this should very well be his destination.

Just as he was going to enter the temple, however, someone exited it.

It was a man, even though calling him an ordinary man would be extremely wrong.

He was extremely tall, and almost as tall as some of the trees in the forest.

He was also very muscular, and his muscles coated his body in an intimidating aura. His features looked rather human, and his face was that of an ordinary middle-aged man with a beard and long hair.

The enormous man looked around, then looked down at him.

"Well, hello there." The man's voice was rather low-pitched, but it didn't sound threatening.

"Umm, hello." The man was towering over him, but Alex regained his composure and greeted him back.

"What is it that you need in the humble abode of this gentle titan, Prometheus?" The man seemed to speak of himself in the third person, and he presumed he was Prometheus.

Prometheus wasn't an unfamiliar name to Alex, as he was one of the titans from the past, and one of the only ones that weren't enemies of Olympus.

He decided not to beat around the bush, and proclaimed to Prometheus, "I'm Alex, son of Athena. I have been sent here by the Three Fates, daughters of Nyx."

Prometheus looked rather confused but he hinted at him to come inside the temple.

He then led him to a spacious hall and served him some food.

Alex wasn't hungry and shook his head, thanking Prometheus for the gesture.

The titan nodded and started eating on his own.

For someone who looked so 'barbaric', he had polite etiquette and ate cleanly.

After finishing his meal, Prometheus told him, "You said you're the son of Athena? We were friends back when I was still in the mortal realm."

Alex was a bit surprised and asked him, "How do you know her?"

"Back when we overthrew Cronus, humanity had just started to flourish, and Athena, Hephaestus, and I were the only ones to have seen the potential those mortals held and we thus frequently collaborated to help them, which, I guess, is why I am here." He informed him.

Alex was a bit curious, as matters on the past of Olympus and the era of titans weren't readily accessible and he wondered about these happenings.

Prometheus sensed his curiosity and said, "One day, a famine was threatening to eradicate humanity, and meat couldn't be eaten since it brought sickness, so the three of us schemed and stole Zeus' divine fire, granting it to humanity and solving the famine. When he discovered this, I was immediately sent here, and if I didn't help with the battle against Cronus, there would be no doubt I would be rotting in Tartarus."

'Zeus seems to be someone with a high bottom line, and someone with an unpleasant personality' Alex pondered on what he just heard.

Prometheus then asked him, "So, Alex, I know Athena wasn't punished since Zeus favored her so much, but do you know what happened to Hephaestus?"

Alex tried to remember anything he knew about the latter, and soon enough, found something.

The very first time he met Hermes, he told him that Hephaestus sheltered himself in his home for the past few hundreds of years.

Alex quoted this to Prometheus.

When the latter heard this, he clenched his fist and stood up, then....kneeled?

He started requesting him profusely, "The Three Fates were right about our meeting. Alex, could I ask of you to inform Hephaestus of my well-being, and get him out of his cocoon? He can't punish himself eternally for a mistake that I, have COMMITTED."

Alex rubbed his head and said, "Of course, I'll try..."

Prometheus then started thanking him fervently but Alex stopped him and made him stand up.

After that, they discussed various things and ended up forming a friendship.

Alex then felt that it was time for him to go find Achilles, and bid his goodbyes or farewells to Prometheus, and left the temple.

He should now find Achilles so they could leave the Underworld.

Fortunately, he didn't have to search very long, as a figure came out of the bushes and stared at him, astonished before exclaiming, "Alex?!"

It was Achilles.