And a sheet for Zeus Prime, the clone!

[hider=The Clone, Zeus Prime]
[center][b][color=DarkViolet]Name:[/color][/b][/center]
Before the late Zeus’ death, this youth was known as the Heir. He loathed this, and yet the late Zeus would neither suffer his clone to bear any lesser name, nor allow him to take the mantle of his own divine name prematurely.

But now the time has come, and with his ascension to power he is the Heir no more. He will not suffer to be called that, and neither does he look kindly upon names like Zeus II, or the ‘new’ Zeus, or Zeus ‘Prime’ – [i]certainly[/i] not ‘the Clone’. He is simply Zeus, just like his originator, and to label him anything else is an insult. So call him Zeus, or King, or a properly reverent epithet, lest you hazard his ire.

His appearance is that of an athletic and handsome youth, with the pale skin of nobility, curling black locks of hair, and a short beard -- the spitting image of the late Zeus, complete with an identical wardrobe of white togas and robes adorned with cloth of gold. He's tall but lithe rather than bulky, and wears a smile well. Unfortunately, most grow to fear that smile.

[center][b][color=DarkViolet]Titles and Roles:[/color][/b][/center]
Just like the original Zeus, this one is the Highest, the King of the Gods, Lord of the Sky, Rainmaker, the Thunder-Bearer, Father of Gods and Men. The conflict lies within that final role: he [i]insists[/i] that the High Pantheon look to him as a father, or at least a brother – whatever the original Zeus was to them. He is not that Zeus’ son, and he is not merely that Zeus’ replacement, he is an [b][i]upgrade.[/i][/b] He demands that all address him just as much respect and reverence as the original Zeus, if not more. Following that perspective, it’s only natural that Hera is his wife just as she was to the original.

[center][b][color=DarkViolet]Artifacts and Powers:[/color][/b][/center]
This Zeus inherited and now possesses the same artifacts and powers as the original; however, having only just come to own the devices, he is not nearly so skilled in their usage. He does at least know their purposes and have some limited experience operating the technologies, courtesy of the original finding time to teach his Heir about such things on occasion.

[center][b][color=DarkViolet]Persona:[/color][/b][/center]
Just like the original, this Zeus is vain, prideful, and arrogant – perhaps to an even greater extent, too. The insufferable part is that while the original Zeus certainly had a way of leading and by the end had centuries of experience governing to draw upon and command respect from, this young clone has none of that. He still thinks himself a worthy and ready successor though, an idea that the elder members of the High Pantheon likely find laughable.

Yet, one laughs at and underestimates him at their own peril. He certainly is not the genius that he thinks himself to be, but he possesses more guile than meets the eye. In particular he’s perceptive about [i]people[/i], and can sense weakness and insecurity like a vulture can smell carrion. He is not nearly so lecherous as his predecessor, but he’s depraved in another way: few things excite him more than the prospect of putting others into their place. Given an opportunity and just the slightest of reasons, he’s wont to ruthlessly bully and humiliate others. He’s at least inventive in his cruelty and thinks violence to be both boring and base; he’s found that dismantling someone’s psyche is perhaps more challenging but also more devastating, and certainly more entertaining to do. For that reason he enjoys gossip when it pertains to others’ misfortunes, fears, regrets, and the like.

The late Zeus at least insisted that a King who is despised is one bound to have a short reign, so he keeps his inner beast restrained… most of the time.

[center][b][color=DarkViolet]Background and Relationships:[/color][/b][/center]
Zeus is practically an infant by the standards of the High Pantheon, dragged out of the cloning vats just nineteen years ago. Modifications accelerated his development such that he was nearly fully grown, physically and mentally, within just a few years. Those first few years were harsh and not at all nurturing. Experiments were performed and he was expected to prove himself, but ultimately that he did – for the most part. Using a novel process, the late Zeus had long attempted to selectively graft his own memories onto the blank slate of a clone’s mind. The result was often madness or insanity on the clone’s part. Besides the clone that would become the Heir, all the others died or were terminated for instability or other flaws – all except for the early prototype of the technology that was Athena, of course. As a proof of concept she had been imprinted with some innate affinities and general knowledge, but nothing specific to Zeus’ personal memories.

The memory-grafting process likely contributed to, if not caused, the slow decline of the late Zeus’ own cognitive abilities. It took a heavy toll on Zeus, but in the Heir the process finally bore fruit; a great deal of the originator’s memories, though hazy, exist in the clone’s mind. Of course, he has a different temperament, explainable by his own unique experiences and the incomplete set of memories that he was given – the late Zeus tried very hard to ensure that no traces of Logan Fletcher had been instilled into the clone.

In any case, despite this nominal success it always was as though the originator was never quite pleased with the clone. Granted, the original Zeus had little love for anyone. He did at least show [i]some[/i] affection to his heir from time to time; he offered a hug or a word of praise to his clone every few weeks or so – far more than most received – for the boy’s resemblance to him was naturally uncanny, and his eagerness and the ease at which he could learn were both impressive. Still, the clone did not receive anywhere near as much affection or kindness as a child should have, and he never could shake off the feeling that some part of him was a disappointment. Perhaps that’s why he sometimes lashes out and has a superiority complex.


There was one member of the High Pantheon that genuinely cared for him and looked out for him: [b]Athena[/b]. She saw a part of herself in him, and he in her. Her kindness soothed the dull pain and the empty pit of the originator’s seeming indifference, and she probably kept him from going mad. For that reason he looks up to her as a big sister; she’s the only one that he will ever open himself up to or express any vulnerability towards. He keeps his secrets, and she doubtless hers, but they do genuinely enjoy one another’s company and she can speak freely without ever hazarding his wrath.

As for the others, he was oft seen but rarely interacted with, a silent shadow to his much more important originator. The High Pantheon all expected the original Zeus to live for much longer, and the last fifteen years or so were practically just the blink of an eye. Many like Hades have yet to ever even see him in person, and of the denizens of Olympus who have encountered him, few had paid him much heed. The result is that he now loathes the feeling of being ignored, and if heads do not turn when he enters a room or voices do not instantly quiet when he speaks, his mood is immediately fouled.[/hider]