Reincarnated As Poseidon

The chamber of Olympus was quiet. Too quiet.

The silence was not peace—it was suspicion, each god waiting for the other to speak first, each wondering who had already made a pact in shadows. The marble floor glowed with faint celestial fire, the thrones of divinity arranged in a circle. At the center, the hearth of Olympus burned, its flames wavering strangely—as though even sacred fire feared what was being discussed tonight.

Zeus sat at the highest seat, eyes storm-dark, lightning sparking faintly from his fingertips as if his rage could barely be contained. Hera watched him from across the chamber, her face unreadable, fingers folded tightly in her lap. Athena leaned forward in her seat, golden eyes sharp, her owl perched upon her shoulder as though listening to every hushed whisper between gods.

"Poseidon," Zeus finally said, breaking the silence. The name echoed with thunder through the chamber. "My brother has tipped the scales beyond repair. He floods mortal cities, bends the sea itself as if Olympus has no say. He dares to stand against the will of the council."

"Not brother," Athena corrected sharply. "What you call brother is not the one we knew. Poseidon has been remade—reborn through forbidden vessels. What now walks the sea is not bound by the laws of the old age. He is both god and something older."

"Thalorin," muttered Hades from the shadows of his half-lit throne. He had not bothered to cloak himself in regal finery. His black robes draped like a funeral shroud as he leaned upon his armrest. "Do not forget the name. You fear to speak it, but that is what he has become."

The chamber stirred uneasily. Gods did not speak Thalorin's name. He was a specter, a curse from the depths of history, a being sealed away so the world could pretend he had never existed. Yet now he lived again—in the shape of the sea-god himself.

Zeus slammed his palm against the throne, thunder cracking. "Whatever name he bears, whatever abyss has fused with him, he must be stopped before the mortal realm is lost to his tide."

"And how, brother?" Hera's voice was calm but cutting, as sharp as any blade. "You would wage war on the sea itself? You would call down lightning upon the tide and think it would not return threefold?"

The fire in the hearth guttered. No one spoke immediately.

It was Apollo who broke the silence. He leaned lazily on his lyre, his youthful face shadowed with unease. "We do not win wars against oceans. We choke them, drain them, bleed them slowly until the tide retreats. Poseidon cannot be met head-on. But perhaps… he can be unraveled."

Athena's gaze sharpened. "Unraveled? Speak plainly, Apollo."

A sly smile tugged at his lips. "Every storm has an eye. Every sea, a depth too deep even for gods to follow. Poseidon was not born in this shape. He was remade. That means there is a seam, a fault line where godhood and vessel bind. Find it. Tear it. He will collapse."

Hermes laughed bitterly from his throne, tossing a coin in the air. "Clever words, but do you know where to find such a seam? Poseidon is not so foolish as to parade weakness. The man has drowned cities and swallowed armies whole, yet you think he carries a thread we can simply pluck?"

"We don't need to find it ourselves," Apollo said smoothly. "We need him to reveal it. And there is only one way gods reveal weakness—battle."

At that word, several thrones stirred.

Ares sat forward, his armor clattering as his eyes gleamed red. "Then let me face him. I'll test his strength myself. I'll find this weakness you dream of."

Zeus's gaze cut across the chamber like a blade. "No. Ares, you are too eager. Poseidon would crush you and drag your bones beneath his waves. This is not a contest of pride."

Ares growled but fell back.

Hades finally spoke again, his tone colder than the grave. "Zeus is correct. This is no war for glory. It is a war for survival. And I tell you now—the longer you wait, the stronger he becomes. The mortal realm already trembles. Entire cities slip beneath his tide. Soon, he will turn his eyes upward… toward Olympus itself."

The chamber fell into a heavy silence.

It was Hera who shattered it, her words sharp. "Then we do what must be done. Not with one champion. Not with one fool's duel. We strike as a council. Three gods at least—one to distract, one to wound, and one to bind. No less will suffice."

Athena leaned back slowly, her mind already racing. "Three gods… but which three?"

Her question hung like a blade in the air.

Aegirion, seated at the lower end of the council, clenched his trident tightly. His voice carried the weight of waves when he spoke. "Do not look to me. I am sea-born as well. The currents in me sing with his. You would not know whether I fight beside you or betray you. Choose others."

That admission only deepened the tension.

Zeus's eyes burned with stormlight. "I will lead."

"Of course you will," Hera said dryly.

"Not alone," Athena said firmly. "If you face him without balance, the sea will swallow even your thunder. We need flame to sear water, shadow to bind tide. Seraphin and Nymera must stand with us. Fire and night—those are our allies."

The gods murmured. The names of the absent goddesses carried their own weight—Seraphin, goddess of eternal flame, and Nymera, goddess of shadows, both ruthless and cunning. They had been absent from Olympus for years, dwelling in their own dominions. To call them back was no small thing.

"They will not come easily," Hermes remarked. "Nymera trusts no council, and Seraphin burns as often as she aids. And yet… yes, they may be persuaded. For even they fear drowning."

Zeus's hand curled into a fist, lightning dancing between his knuckles. "Then it is settled. We call them. The three shall rise against Poseidon."

"Three?" Hades asked with cold amusement. "And what of me? Shall I sit idly while the sea claws at my gates, drowning mortal souls faster than I can receive them? Do not mistake me, Zeus. If Poseidon rises unchecked, even the Underworld will flood. The dead will not rest. I will not rest."

Athena studied him warily. "Would you fight beside us, Lord of the Dead? Or would you wait until our blood is spilled and strike the victor?"

Hades's thin smile revealed nothing. "Perhaps both."

The hearth flame shuddered again, sputtering sparks like tears.

For a moment, all of Olympus was silent. But the silence was not peace—it was the weight of choices, of plots thickening like storm clouds.

Far below, in the mortal realm, the sea stirred. Poseidon's laughter rolled through the depths, low and knowing. He had not yet seen Olympus's schemes… but he could feel them.

The gods thought themselves clever.

But even storms could be drowned.