lordofbunnies (lordofbunnies) wrote in olympian_rewind, @ 2008-11-02 07:57:00 |
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Current mood: | scared |
Who: Pan
What: Dreams (right?)
Where: Dreamscape
When: BACKDATED to the night of October 31st
Warnings: Nope.
Ahhh, Halloween. It wasn't a Greek holiday by far, but it was funny the things you could get power from. If Hades could have the Day of the Dead, then the god of panic could surely get rewards from the one day of the year where humans paid attention to the spirits, whether from fear or amusement, and actually wanted to be scared.
Resting out on the top of the apartment building roof, he laid out across a mattress he'd pulled up here just for star-gazing, furry legs exposed without a human guise to hide them. A case of sherry bottles sat by him next to a bag of carrots. Mmm. Carrots. He could hear the delightful squeal of children and adults alike as they were scared on their routes of candy begging or at the Hallow's Eve parties all around the block. Yes. Yessss~ The old goat knew he wouldn't get a big kick of power like this until Earth Day ran around, so he was soaking it all in.
The night wore on, and the bottles began to empty. The people were beginning to thin out, not trusting the dark side of the holiday night, and began to creep back to their homes. Party poopers! Pan grinned and, standing on the edge of the building, tossed out the bag of carrots in a fit of giggles. The giggle became a menacing cackle that chilled the blood when he heard people below squeal in fear and confusion as they were pelted with vegetables. Hee! Run, little squishy things, run!
"That'll teach you," he said with a hiccup, reaching for the last bottle and downing it without a blink. Mmm. He let out a loud belch that filled the air before falling back onto the mattress, sleep finally claiming him.
~~~~~
When his eyes opened again, he wasn't on the roof. Or even Miami. He had come to know Miami... and Miami didn't have mountains, pristine lakes, or looming trees of pine. What a cruel trick for Morpheus to play... to tease him with visions of his old home.
"I hate this dream," he grumbled. He stood and waited to wake up. People always woke up when they realized their dreams weren't really happening, didn't they?
But instead, the ground under Pan's hooves shook lightly. He gasped and fell to his knees. An earthquake?
But... no. He watched as something rose up out of the earth bit by bit. They were human features, each larger than Pan himself. Full lips, cheeks made rosy by the warm soil, a soft nose, and eyes... the greenest, wildest eyes he'd ever seen. And he knew them well.
"Gaia," whispered the goat god reverently. He prostrated himself.
The earth rumbled again, and he realized she was chuckling. An ivy reached out from a tree trunk and brushed his cheek, letting him know she wasn't here to inspire fear. "Sorry," he mumbled. "It's just... I haven't seen you in so long, Great Mother. Not even here."
The face blinked but otherwise remained blank. After a long moment, she looked to the sky and Pan followed her line of sight.
"Birds?" he asked simply. Yes, they were there all right. Hundreds-- no, dozens! Of every sort and color and size. They were flying around something... He had to squint to see it before he saw it was an eagle. Why was it so much smaller than the others? The great predator seemed to be having trouble just staying in the air. Were the other birds trying to make sure it did? It seemed that way...
"THERE IS DANGER LOOMING," said Gaia, her voice booming through Pan's very core. He let out a yelp as the force of it shook the earth under his feet and he was unable to keep his footing. "DANGER."
"D-d-danger, Grandmother?" he asked. What was she trying to warn him about? Was she even doing that? He couldn't rely on even his own dreamscape anymore...
Her eyes were fixated on the eagle and when Pan looked back up as well, he gasped with horror. The birds had circled closer around the eagle, but not out of concern. They were attacking it, swooping in one at a time to rip at it with talons and beaks. The bird, normally so poised and proud, now shrieked with agony and began to tumble to the ground with its attackers following after it. Clouds began to gather, growing dark and rumbling with thunder.
"No, no, no, no, stop!" Pan yelled, following after them, shaking his arms at them in an attempt to scare them away. But birds had never been his strong suit, they didn't dwell so much in his realms. They ignored him and began to feast on the eagle while it still struggled on the ground. Pan howled and dove into the fray. Lightning flashed as the sky roared.
Only to have it all disappear.
"Oof." He fell hard onto the ground. No birds, no feathers, no freshly spilled blood. It was just gone. "What...?"
"THE EAGLE WILL FALL," said Gaia in her earth-shattering voice, her face reappearing beneath him like he'd never even moved. The certainty in her voice made Pan's blood chill. "THE WEAKNESS HAS BEEN FOUND. HIS TIME HAS COME. THEY WILL USE IT... TO THEIR OWN ADVANTAGE."
"Who?!" he asked, panic rising. He had to scream to be heard over the growing storm. "Who will? Who's the eagle? I don't understand!"
Gaia opened her mouth, to say something he thought, but suddenly blood spilled out. Bright, red, mortal blood. She closed her eyes and tears fell onto her cheeks, but instead of a pure clearness, they were as black and oily as ichor. And a horrid, mourning wail filled the air.
~~~~~
Pan woke with a shriek of his own, sitting straight up from the rooftop. But he was awake now. No howling storm. No blood, mortal or immortal, bleeding from the cracks of the earth. Only a bunch of empty sherry bottles and the empty sky.
Suddenly cold, Pan pulled on a house coat and sprinted inside. He didn't feel safe until he had locked the door to his flat after him and curled up under the bed. And he didn't stop shaking. Not for a long while."
Summary: Pan has a dream. Just a dream. Just a... right?