Altered Tundra

Project Untamed

@Melissa Here's my boi finally!

Wild Boy Free Fallin'

"Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively." — The Dalai Lama

_{Face Claim || Tom Holland ♦ Color || Burnt Orange/#cc5500}

Levi {LEE-Vie} || 17, 4/18 || CisMale, HetFlex || Squirrel Likes & Dislikes || Freerunning and Parkour + Not going to class + The outdoors (specifically anywhere not near an authority figure + Getting into trouble + Any kind of nut and that goes double for nut butter || Authority. He'd rather be able to roam free. - Sitting still for too long (he's got a bad case of Restless Body Syndrome) - Anything lemon-lime flavored. Yes, sadly that means no sprite or 7-Up for Levi - Griffin Pierce. Something about that guy triggers him Habits & Quirks ♦ Not only does he refuse to stay still, but Levi is also often the first one out the door whenever a class is over. Even before the bell rings, he will jet out as soon as he can. ♦ Levi has extensive knowledge of the layout of San Agustin. This may or may not be the result of him getting into places that he shouldn't. Or just climbing all of the structures. Who is to say which is the truth? ♦ He vibes hella hard to an old genre of music from the 2010s called EDM. His Dre Beat Headphones are attached to his iPhone 30 and there's always some remix of some old song playing. ♦ Levi enjoys the company of those that think like him. So if they happen to enjoy breaking a few rules, go ahead and assume he's nearby somewhere ♦ He can always be seen snacking on his nuts. That is to say, ziplock bags full of assorted nuts and seeds. Honey roasted only. Dreams || The extent of Levi's dreams could be summed up in his desire to explore the world. As someone who hates being confined to small places or that of which he has already seen to its fullest extent, he desires to be free. He needs to see the world and it certainly should have more to offer than what he has seen at San Agustin. Plus, he's bored of this school already and it's only been two months. Fears || Can someone be afraid of another person? If so, then put Grifin Pierce on that list. Okay, maybe it's less of a fear and more of some subconscious wariness that Levi has towards Griffin. He doesn't know the guy that well, but he's heard stories and he'd rather keep his distance, which should be easy since he's quite agile. Another thing that might be surprising but he's lowkey afraid of heights. Despite most of his time spent climbing buildings and the like, Levi is afraid of heights. He believes in addressing fears instead of hiding behind them. Or he's just a masochistic son of a bitch. He hasn't decided which applies to him most. Misc || Brush Fonts → Colors of Autumn I like the egg mcmuffin from Mickey D's .................................................................	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █	Free-Loving → Adventurous → Chill → Energetic → Rebellious → Tempestuous → Daring → "Squirrely" Impression Levi has a certain charm about him that marches to his own drum. It doesn’t always make sense nor does it make him automatic friends, especially with those who respect a thing called the rules. If there is one thing about him that is bound to leave an impression, it’s his ability to make any uncomfortable situation even more uncomfortable. And that’s what makes it exciting. Levi Forrester is the spider-monkey who can’t sit still; the restless, young boy who always has to be moving. Whether that’s going for jogs through whatever San Agustin calls a forest, climbing all of the buildings or any obstacles to get in his required exercise (or else he’ll flip his shit). He’s the poster child for an early 2000s skater mag with his baggy clothing, the way he talks, and, especially his choice in music. He’s the kind of person that might annoy you or you might find him a breath of fresh air among the uptight snobs and fuckboy wannabes. He doesn’t pretend to be something he’s not and won’t dial it down just to make you feel a little more at ease. You will either love him to death or wouldn’t want him near you. Yeah, Levi can be a bit nutty but that’s part of his charm. Levi is someone who values honesty in his friends and whatever comes past that. He values a sense of loyalty to just be real with him. He doesn’t do the whole “do this favor for me and I’ll do it for you”. No, prove to him you’re a loyal friend and he’ll have your back regardless. Pre-Memory Loss Life For as long as he could remember, Levi Forrester has always had to watch his back. From his divorced parents often using him as the pawn in the nasty verbal shouting wars, using him as leverage to one-up each other, and eventually making him loath them both. Through all of this, since he was seven, he had to grow up quickly. Being the youngest of three children, Levi survived by applying a child-friendly code: don't regret and always do what makes you happy. He's tried to apply that to everything in his life, but when two big sisters feel so protective over you, it was hard for Levi to find his way. With two older sisters, Levi couldn't find his way until he dug a hole out of the prison that was his life. Sometime after turning thirteen -- maybe a bit before -- the good-natured boy who suffered under the tug of war his parents put him through and the overbearing nature his sisters had, Levi broke out of his cell (yes cell, not shell) and found ways to express himself. He started small: tagging walls at his school in Seattle, Washington, getting into fights (some started, some finished but most lost cause he was and still is a puny SOB), and not really paying much attention to this little thing called rules. Levi blames his upbringing. He wasn't raised right. Too many rules and not enough attention was given to him. Honestly, the fact that he only stuck to little stuff like vandalism and trespassing should make his folks proud. He could have been a murderer in the making. Of course, he has thought about it. Anyone who says they didn't think of killing someone at least once is either lying or already did it and doesn't want the FBI to come knocking on their door. ...Not that Levi has killed anyone or anything like that. That's illegal and he's totally a law-abiding citizen. Just like Gerard Butler was. So where were we? Oh yes, Levi's extracurriculars. Remember that bit about Levi trespassing? Yeah, there's more to that. He does so with style and grace. This is because Levi has always been one for athletics. During all of those times, his parents didn't want to deal with him, they signed him up for athletics growing up. The rigid schedule of baseball, basketball, football, track, and just a lot of activities he didn't want to do but couldn't deny there were at least some benefits. Without all of that physical conditioning imprinted into his mind, Levi wouldn't have found breaking all of the rules and climbing structures a fifteen-year-old him shouldn't be climbing the most exhilarating and form of adrenaline he felt since he pissed on a cop car when he was thirteen (among the other illegal acts he committed during his early days). A lot of his free time has been spent getting to high places with relative ease, all the while he evaded the cops and went unnoticed by his folks. They barely noticed he was gone but he had to wonder that, in the moments before some guys from some place dressed like Men in Black kidnapped him from the back alley behind the Parkour Vision gym, he had to wonder how exciting these guys were. He lived for thrills and wherever he went, at least he wouldn't be used as a pawn anymore. He was free to live his best life.

Project Untamed

_{A @metanoia // @HaleyTheRandom Collaboration
Featuring the Dynamic Duo of Stargazer & Picasso}
______________________________________________☆______________________________________________

For as long as the party came into its full swing and those who went in before she had mingled, Cassie stood off in the corner, hiding behind the ferns that were placed in a weird position off to the right. She desperately wanted to go in, but barging in wasn’t in good manners and she had always tried to adhere to some sense of proper etiquette. That and where she stood, she had the perfect vantage point to snap some opportune pictures of those actually enjoying the party and everything it had. She saw TJ and her friends enjoying a game of beer pong and how Nicholas wasted very little time indulging in what seemed like a like-minded, master of opportunity act as he approached them.

Raising her camera, she noticed Savannah being especially stationary. In the past, when she would be lurking behind a tree or a wall, Savannah was always so graceful but she was also kind of active. Or maybe it was Cassie always moving that made it seem like that. “No, that’s not--"

"Boo!"

The tiny blonde found herself jumping at least a foot into the air, knocking over one of the fern plants, the clay pot it held the fern in falling over and smashing. The sound it sent off was thankfully muffled by the music playing from inside the party, but what couldn’t be muffled was the feeling that Cassie had when she jumped for joy a moment later as she saw Billie. She immediately hugged her bestie for dear life. Literally.

"What are we waiting for? Go in!"

“I was waiting for you!” Cassie nudged her friend, holding onto her arm with a wide smile that would light up any dark room. And then her eyes fell onto Billie’s outfit. It was no secret that Cassie had a wandering eye and she had no problem admitting when her best friend that lit up her world was looking so good tonight. “Love the outfit, Beej!”

”But are you sure it’s okay for tonight though? I mean, back home I would have done the full face of makeup and a tight little dress and ---” With a sigh, Billie waved her free hand dismissively. ”You’re right. I look amazing. And so do you!” she said, playfully tapping her friend on the nose with her index finger. ”Now tell me love. What all have you noticed going on so far?”

She giggled when her nose was booped and hummed thoughtfully, trying to recall everything. “Wellll, the party got into full swing. People have danced, Leo roared proudly and just roared like he always did. But the most notable thing I noticed, well outside that Tane and Sol arrived, looking a little more extra than usual--” She was referring to Tane, of course, “--your brother went straight for TJ and her friend, Sav.” Cassie was more than aware about how Billie felt about Nicholas’ whole obsession with Tyler Jane. Well, she was certain Nicholas wouldn’t call it that, but both of them knew it was a light obsession at least. “And that’s basically everything I’ve been able to spot so far.”

Raising her eyebrows in a form of surprised approval, Billie was glad to hear that Sol had arrived. What she wasn’t glad to hear was that Nick had beelined for little miss ballerina. ”I don’t see why he’s so obsessed with her,” she scoffed. ”Like seriously. It’s fucking disgusting. He knows he could have literally almost anyone that he wants and he wants to be with that…. That… thing. I can’t. I literally fucking cannot.” Arms crossed, brows nit, Billie glared at TJ through the window. ”On the bright side, they don’t know I’m coming to their little party.” Her expression lighting up, Billie turned back to her friend as a wicked smile spread across her face. Now let’s go make some people regret everything.”

With a smile and one action of hooking her arm with Billie’s, the two girls waltzed into the party — albeit uncharacteristically silent.

Snooping from afar had been one thing for Cassie. It was the sort of delightful thrill she often experienced whenever she had caught some of her friends with people she didn’t think they liked to be seen with. And perhaps the moments photographed were meant to be private. It’s not like Cassie would ever divulge them intentionally. She cherished those moments because it allowed her to see them for how they truly were: vulnerable, exposed, real.

A lot like how Cassie felt right now after being pulled from her comfort zone from behind the ferns.

But she wasn’t going to say that. At least, she would embrace her new surroundings as openly as Billie was.

“So what do you think? I feel it has a nice energy about it,” Cassie noted, looking around. “I mean, as far as private-not-so-private parties are concerned.”

Nose upturned ever so slightly in disgust, Billie tried to keep the ever-growing need to grimace from appearing on her face. "It's okay, I guess. At least they managed to score booze."

Another thoughtful glance around the room, Billie shrugged her shoulders. "So what do you wanna do first?"

“Hmm...” Cassie hummed thoughtfully. It wasn’t until she spotted the unoccupied drinks table did a lightbulb appear above the tiny blonde’s head, which was followed by a single clap. “We should get some drinks!” Without warning, she tugged on Billie’s hand, jerking her in the direction of the table. In the span of about five seconds, not only were they standing in front of it, Cassie poured them two solo cups full of whatever alcohol was on the table. “There! Now, uh, what should we toast to?” Again, she hummed.

As her body was pulled forward, Billie's feet did their best to catch up. She had no idea what Stargazer had just poured into their cups, but it was alcohol so it didn't really matter anyway. "I say that we toast to us. Our friendship. Our good looks. Our charm. And last but not least, our ability to turn heads no matter where we are." A shining smile on her face, Billie raised her cup up high. "To us," she shouted a little too loudly. "And to all tonight has to offer!"

She found herself giggling past the point of control when Billie’s voice did little to hinder their position away from those dancing. She was confident that, by now, those who were supposed to be here, had to have noticed the girls helping themselves to the drinks. “Well, so much for blending in.” In a rather ‘fuck it’ moment, Cassie raised her glass high up too, clinking the plastic cup against her bestie’s.

“Spin the bottle and 7 minutes in heaven starts now! If you want to get lucky tonight, come join either one of the games next to the pong tables…”

“Oh! That sounds like a blast” Cassie’s delightfully curious voice, and by extension, eyes, found their way over where she saw the party host and her bestie’s twin. “What’cha thinking?” Curious Cassie asked, sipping the rest of her drink as her eyes kept a fixated gaze on Billie.

”Mmmm…. We could do spin the bottle… but seven minutes in heaven would mean we could make out with people. But if we do good enough at spin the bottle then there could be more making out later… let’s do that, fuck it.”

Ask anyone who knew her, multiple-choice was not Cassie Lucasta’s strongest subject. Every time there was a test or anything that had her choosing more than one thing at the same time, she froze right then and there; and even now she is sweating on the inside. But she didn’t want to alert Billie to this sudden development, so she gave her one and only Picasso a bright, I’m-actually-sweating-balls smile. With her hand tightly clasped her ride or die’s hand and took a seat at the area by the closet, where she the forming circle for spin the bottle was at.

“I have a good feeling about this!” She was lying but Cassie was, if nothing else, an optimistic person.

With a wide grin, Billie took her seat beside Cassie. ”Oh this is going to be great! Especially since I have zero idea how to play this.”

Cassie giggled, nudging Billie’s shoulder. “It’s like you said!” She looked at her, brandishing a slightly more confident smile. “You get to kiss someone And I bet there’s gotta be one here that you want the bottle to land on.” As she spoke, the blonde couldn’t stop her wandering mind, which also was often paired with her curious eyes, from fixating on that one person she hasn’t been able to stop thinking about. Every butterfly that has been released from the cocoon since she spotted them were flapping their wings away, hoping that mating season was nearing.

”Maybe,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. ”Maybe not. Guess we’ll just have to find out.”

And that was the last thing either of them said as they took their spot at the top of the circle, seeing all of their friends and some not so friendly gather around. Nicholas made a crack at Tane, which he probably didn't appreciate. Cassie didn't know and she saw that Billie was too in her zone to notice, either. All Cassie could do is wonder what could happen if she took a slight chance. "Oh my! I'll go!"

Cassie was rarely ever one to take initiative like this. Being one who was always on the sidelines, always snapping photos of people in situations like this. Whether it was Tyler Jane dancing until her artistic heart was content in the art studio, Dwayne enjoying a relaxing night in the common area, or that one time she saw Nicholas weak at his feet for Frankie, she never put herself in such a position where eyes were on her.

But as Cassie Lucasta bent over since her small frame didn't allow her to secure the bottle in her tiny hand, she gave it a spin and watched as the pendulum had swung back and forth. Every moment passing brought her closer and closer to cycles of heavy breathing. It really wasn't until it stopped and her eyes had slowly trailed up, she was breathing abnormally and her heart rate increased when she came into Leo's gaze. Every part of her that could tremble did, rendering the usually quick-to-speak Cassie into a frozen statue that wanted to move but nothing but nerves of glass existed.

Oh god! It actually landed on him. It really did!

Project Untamed

_{Interactions — Tyler Jane // Tane
Mentions — @Melissa @BrutalBx}

The party had barely gotten started and already Nicholas was starting to feel like he always did when bad things weren’t far from happening. That familiar sensation surging through his body, the thoughts he had that often set him back several steps -- basically everything that Kaleb had advised him to not do. He felt all of it and, yet, he was the most amused he’d been in quite some time. Amused in the sense that Tyler Jane had directly addressed that “almost” moment they had.

“I remember,” he muttered, curling those satisfied lips into a smile.

Indeed, thinking to that moment in how every time he thought she’d back away, Tyler Jane proved him wrong that not only could she hang at his level, but convinced him that he wasn’t raising the bar enough for her. So, of course, he went further than he ever had with her (or anyone for that matter). They had gotten so close that Nicholas could still hear the way her heartbeat accelerated when they were inches apart. He had the clearest memory of how the slightest movement might’ve disrupted the moment.

Nicholas remembered a lot of things and especially recalled how they were so close in exploring their connection on an intimate level. That Godforsaken door creaked open a moment too soon and now, as he could only watch her direct her attention to everyone around them, announcing some games were going to be happening soon, he let out a sigh that quickly shaped itself into a sly smile.

“Only time will tell who we get lucky with.” Playing the games he invented, Nicholas made sure for TJ to hear that as he took a seat among those who chose the poison of Spin the Bottle. It might’ve been childish and simplistic in its origin, but with a bit of lady luck shining on you, Nicholas knew this was the primo spot for maximum fun.

And he was all smiles until he spotted Tane sit across from him. Nicholas wasn't sure if it was his ability to immediately irritate him the minute he walked in his general direction or how, for a party meant for casual enjoyment, he chose to glam it up with a suit, but that wasn't what bothered him most. No, it was Tane's entire attitude. His whole existence reminded Nicholas of a faint, though still very foggy, memory of...someone. He couldn't describe it but it was like Nicholas saw someone that seemed familiar to him.

"Hey, Tane," he spoke up, making sure Tane heard him. "Ted Bundy called! He wants his suit back."

Sum up your week in roleplaying in just 3 words

Let's get lit!

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

---

_{CASA DE ACROPOLIS, SEATTLE}

Divine Protector

---

When his surprisingly productive workout with Ben ended and he dropped her off at the Seattle U campus, Heracles’ day was primarily spent preparing for tonight’s party. The same party that all of his main contacts, which for Jackson Drake, meant any influencer in their 20s with at least 500K followers. Between drives and uploading teases of his booze run, food, and the like, Jackson was live on Instagram all afternoon. He entertained those who plugged in, which was around five thousand of his…devoted followers.

Around 6:30, when Jackson finally made it back, he wasn’t alone. The sound of over ten cars -- all ranging from classic muscle cars to BMWs and Yakuza Motorcycles crowded the driveway and street. This was soon followed by the cries of Influencer Privilege as anyone who was anybody in Seattle was here and they were ready to...help Herc set up the party.

Nearly an hour later, what was usually messy, but a presentable home for some frat boys was transformed into the epicenter of a crowded mess of young adults and 20somethings, all who responded to Jackson’s open door invite. If you were even remotely close to any of his fifty closest friends, some of which were his own kind, then you knew where to be on this particular Saturday night. Tables were spread throughout for beer pong and refreshments, a local DJ who was also one of the more expensive kind was handling the music, which was a playlist hand-selected by Heracles himself, a bar with a paid server making drinks the right way: with flair and style, and certainly not least, just the right amount of party favors to keep anyone happy and hopefully calm.

^{It was going to be a good fucking night.}

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

Nyx, Primordial Night

N Y X , P R I M O R D I A L N I G H T
N Y X , P R I M O R D I A L N I G H T

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx HUMAN 𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗔𝗦 Selene Valentine 𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘 Mid-40s 𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗘𝗥 Talkshow Host of Beautiful Creatures & Author	𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝑮𝑶𝑶𝑫 Benevolent & Compassionate Empathetic & Dutiful Enigmatic & Resourceful 𝑩𝑨𝑫 Assertive & Transparent Pedantic & Meddlesome Nonconforming & Individualistic 𝗔𝗠𝗕𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 When Nyx was exposed to the worst humanity had to offer, instead of furiously swearing them off in a fit of rage (like a certain God of War might), Nyx saw potential in them and rose above the primordial impulses that might lead her down a path of darkness; instead Nyx devoted the rest of her mortal life to bringing out the inward beauty of anyone who might want it. 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 Having found a purpose in humanity’s future -- something Nyx strangely feels like its something she has to do herself -- Nyx is determined to help them and she fears that she won’t be able to. She fears the colossus will force her out before that mission is accomplished. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx	xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx DEITY 𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗬 Nyx 𝗗𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗜𝗡 Primordial Goddess of the Night 𝗣𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗢𝗡 Greek

𝗠𝗬𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗬

Nyx is revered throughout the Greek Pantheon as being one of the First Gods. And to those that have descended from the Night — from her very existence — she is thought to be more than what they are.

The truth is, Nyx is the night. Her very existence brought forth the first night. She is the Primordial Night.

Nyx has lived most of her days in the depths of Tartarus, the deep abyss in which the wicked are tormented and in which the Titans are imprisoned. It has been said that while Nyx lives there, her devout husband, the entity that she has birthed 1000 sons and 1000 daughters with, serves as the darkness that engulfs Tartarus, simultaneously keeping it hidden from even Hades, the King of the Underworld, and protecting Nyx from the outside world.

It’s true, Nyx has isolated herself from any form of outside contact. At least, until the day that changed everything...

𝗛𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬

And that fateful day was when that damned Colossus — the bane of all divine existance.

Every Pantheon to ever exist, from Greek to Roman; Egyptian to Yoruban; Aztec to Norse -- they all felt the constrictions of the beast that doubtless dwells inside the colossus. Or maybe it’s just a mythical entity like every Deity. Perhaps it is one of them that controls it.

This is one of many thoughts Nyx has entertained throughout her forced stay on the mortal plane. It is with this forced outing did she come to truly understand the complexities of them. Nyx used to despise any contact of the creation that spawned from her being in existence, but time living among them, time being with them, being able to understand how they live and what makes the blood in their bodies boil, what makes their hearts sing with joy, who demands their attention — Nyx has compiled a complete understanding in their beauty. But in her time, where she has seen the good and even the bad, Nyx has been unfortunate enough to experience the ugly side of humanity.

And that was perhaps the single most repulsing thing she, Selene Valentine, has known.

When she became exposed to the foulness of war and the acts humanity have committed in the name of God -- a God that no singular Pantheon has ever recognized. That was the moment Nyx swore to rise up and try and make humanity’s world a beautiful place. It’s why for the past seventy years, sometimes in secret but mostly shadow puppeting CEOs, did she start a lifestyle empire. which currently takes its modern form as a daytime talk show likened to that of Opera and Dr. Oz (but actually good and not a scammer).

Beautiful Creatures. The concept is to bring out the beauty of anyone, regardless of the outward appearance, and make everyone feel as haunting as the tales of Nyx herself, because even if the world is the most atrocious thing to ever be, if you work hard at it, you too, can be a beautiful creature just like me.

Lives here

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

---

A T H E N A

_{ATHENA'S APARTMENT → SEATTLE MAJOR CRIMES → CRIME SCENE}

Goddess of Wisdom and War

---

Athena had a moment of weakness the instant she found herself staring at her bedroom ceiling, the hovering ceiling fan blowing dusty air all over her bedding. Thoughts of the Conclave plagued her mind and she wanted to say that Hephaestus’ passing took its toll on her. She wanted to say that the reason she had been lying awake ten minutes before her alarm was set to go off at 5:00 am. Athena was a lot of things, but lowering herself to the likes of Ares and Loki by lying was not something she nor Natalia Steele did.

The reason she couldn’t go back to sleep or even call in sick today was that despite it being a Saturday -- and, if last night’s news coverage was to be taken as the Oracle’s Prophecy -- it was going to be a beautiful day. But no, she couldn’t do anything because she didn’t have a day off for at least five days. And that was assuming her Captain didn’t chew her out for ditching work two days ago for that God-forsaken Conclave. The nightmares of Hera’s annoying rant still haunted her dreams that were usually just reruns of what she had done in the day previous

Sometimes when her dreams were interrupted or a train of thought had been reduced to growing annoyances of whatever forced its way into her mind, Athena liked to channel the part of her that was supposed to be wiser than her brother, Ares. She did sometimes, but not always. Athena was guilty of violent thoughts and just exactly who she might find themselves on the receiving end of her worst thoughts.

“Hera is on the top of that list,” Athena muttered literally seconds before her alarm went off.

The Goddess of Sometimes Wisdom smacked her alarm clock so hard that it cracked the top but the ringing didn’t stop. At this moment, she didn’t care. Natalia Steele had to get ready for work. One hour later, she was cleaned, full of caffeine, and had a belly full of a day-old bagel with spicy butter that may or may not come back to haunt her later in the day. Either way, Athena was soon out the door and her black charger sped down her street and into the dawn of Seattle.

---

Detective Natalia Steele had a love/hate relationship with her job.

There were many facets of being a detective that brought her a lot of satisfaction: keeping neighborhoods safe, getting to bust those who might be selling to kids, and being part of something bigger than her -- bigger than Athena. She found a spiritual fulfillment when she did her part in those big busts that made nation-wide news. The Seattle Strangler? She helped with that. Back Alley Butcher? She pieced the complex puzzle that he left for her that led to a Florist by the name of Albert Travers, whose brother was the Back Alley Butcher. She has racked up over two-thousand arrests in her five years on the job. Of those two thousand and under DA Amanda Woodall’s strict principles, over seventy percent of those arrested were convicted.

Indeed there are many aspects of Natalia’s job that make her almost proud to wake up so early every day and get underpaid for her service.

But, on some days, the paperwork was enough to drive her mad without the assistance of Dionysus’ special wine. The same paperwork that was the same thing over and over again: misdemeanors about j-walking, false leads about what should have been major busts, false rape allegations that were meant to be followed through but due to “extenuating circumstances”, Natalia was forced to file these reports.

And she hated that. She hated that abusive husbands were allowed to dictate just what they could make their wives do. Sure, Natalia wasn’t Special Victims Unit. She wasn’t supercop Olivia Benson who bent the rules to make the right people suffer. She worked in Major Crimes, which meant she shouldn’t even be looking at another detective’s case log.

“Three, seven…” Natalia’s voice was low as she went down the list of unsolved cases ranging from sexual assault, battery, false statements -- everything that shouldn’t be there was in minimal detail. “Who in the--”

RING RING RING

As her phone went off three times, Natalia answered in rather aggressively. “Yeah, this is Steele.” After waiting a minute, one of the B cops currently out patrolling said something that caught Athena’s attention. “Control the scene. Establish a perimeter. Don’t let any press within ten yards of the scene. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” Natalia quickly got up, grabbing her dark red leather jacket.

“What’s the rush, Steele? Got a hot date?” Colin Brady, her mortal partner, joked as he casually sat across from her. His arms were folded behind his head

She turned midstep, looking at his smug face, giving him a sly smirk. “Why don’t you come along and find out? Maybe you’ll learn something for a change.”

---

The sound of America-made muscle pulled onto the scene, the media held back at least twenty yards, which made the brunette smile. Everyone knew whenever she said a number -- any number, especially when it was about distance -- Athena always meant double. And it was a good thing that B-Cop listened to her.

The scene past the police tape, past the CSI roaming about, finishing up their preliminary findings, couldn’t have been given justice even if the mortal’s tried. The majority of the crime scene was in a back alley. There was blood splayed all over: along the walls, the dumpster, and trash cans were all tipped over. Pieces of teeth were spread throughout the ground, but it doesn’t look like there had been any body-sized blood prints -- which Athena was thankful for. At least she didn’t have to swallow any more darkness today.

“Detective Steele!” FBI Agent Dominic Evans called her over.

“So why in god’s name is there an FBI agent on this crime scene? A back alley brawl seems a bit below your pay grade.”

“Perhaps,” Dominic partially confirmed with a slight nod. He stepped in front of Athena and crouched down so he could get a better view of the ground. “But the MO of this particular crime scene matches the same one of a mysterious figure I’ve been chasing for quite some time.”

“How long?” Brady asked, saying what Athena was about to. He got a glare for his interruption.

“Give or take, seven years. This is the first time in five I have been this close.”

Athena had to applaud his dedication but she couldn’t help but laugh and she made no effort to hide it from him.

“I understand this might seem silly, but my record was spotless. Until this perp, at least. The only one who has escaped my justice and I don’t plan on letting it go.”

And that’s where he lost Athena’s praise -- hell, let’s just say her support was gone as well. If there was something that Athena hated more than anything in this mortal world, it was someone who didn’t know their place and who got in her way. These were her streets to govern, not his. And she wasn’t about to let some hotshot FBI agent seize control over a crime scene she was called to.

“Agent Evans, I know you don’t expect me to believe that your superiors back at Quantico approve of you abusing your power. Actually, I know for a fact that you, Dominic Tiberius Evans, the twenty-year veteran of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, have been suspended for six months because you thought you could weasel your way into investigations that matched this mystery Hooded Man you have claimed to be following for nearly a decade.”

“You stupid bitch. Who do you think--”

She raised her finger, sliding it side to side. “Not so fast. I will save you the embarrassment of finding out which of the two of us is the better fighter and I would hate for your fragile male ego to get crushed in less than five seconds. So here’s what we’re going to do!” She stepped close to him and Dominic flinched, resulting in a genuine smile to appear on Athena’s face. “You are going to politely excuse yourself from my crime scene. Fake a phone call, say you have all that you need -- I don’t really care. Just leave before your five-second window is closed.”

He grumbled something but then Athena started to countdown with her hand. Five, four, three, two, one--

“Excuse me, I have to take this call.”

“Smart choice.” Athena watched proudly as Dominic Evans walked off the crime scene and, hopefully, if she was lucky, he would never be seen again in a very long time or she might have to channel her ire against Hera and direct it on that poor excuse for a human walking away.

“I forgot how scary you could be, Natalia.”

“Don’t you go losing your balls on me, too, Colin.”

After an exchange of laughs, Athena glanced over at the press, spotting some familiar faces among the growing crowd. The scene was as controlled as it could be, but something about it stirred an uneasy storm within Athena’s core. There was something weirdly familiar about the brutality of the scene. She knew this corner, too. It was mafia territory, which made her worry. Not so much about those that were harmed. She was confident that they got what they deserved, but more so about the person responsible for sending them to the hospital.

For the next twenty minutes, Athena and Colin spent their time isolated from each other, interviewing witnesses, gathering as much intel as they could before they had finally exited the scene. “So what are we going to do?” Colin asked, arms folded over the hood of Athena’s black charger.

“You know for a seasoned detective, you can be awfully narrow-minded.” Athena shook her head and let out a sigh. “The drug dealers who were attacked are still alive and should be out of the ICU by the time we get there. So the most obvious choice is to question them and find out who did this.”

“And if they don’t know?”

Athena didn’t say anything. She just got into the driver’s seat and sat there, pondering what Dominic Evans had said. She hated to give him any credit, but his obsession wasn’t wrong. This same MO matched the one from DC. But if that’s the case, Athena only feared this investigation would get a lot more complicated.

“Then we might actually get to stretch our legs for once.”

Project Untamed

_{Interactions — Tyler Jane // Savannah // Talya
Mentions — @Melissa @NeoAJ @HaleyTheRandom}

Nicholas Grey had always been one to test the deep end without getting his feet wet. He wasn’t one to tread lightly nor think too far ahead when it came to how his actions might misfire. Honestly, it never occurred to him that he would miss his shot. Whether that was trying his luck in getting out of an exam by faking being sick or having the gall to call out certain people for the problematic trends he started, he was always one to take risks when his gut feeling directed into the light of success. It almost always went according to plan.

Keyword: Almost.

And this was such a case when he decided to jump headfirst into giraffe and gazelle-infested waters without a safety line. He gave them both a compliment. Despite what came after, Nicholas didn’t have any regrets nor was what he said a lie. He really did think both TJ and Savannah looked hot tonight.

But, as the events unfolded before his eyes, Nicholas heard Mr. Hale’s sternly-worded advice replay in his head like a broken record, like it was the fucking gospel of the good book he never bothered to read: maybe try a little honesty with her and quit all of these games.

The problem was Nicholas didn’t know how to be honest with her. His default setting had always been to play games and have his fun. Maybe Hale is right. Maybe I don’t have anything to lose.

Of course, try telling TJ that because she had the audacity to make some shallow comment about some dude’s arm, like he held a candle to Nicholas Grey. He was a nobody. A non-important spec of dirt in the riveting oasis that was the man wearing the blue floral-patterned shirt.

Keep calm. She’s probably doing this on purpose.

And maybe that’s why Nicholas was getting excited all of a sudden. He always would do the same thing to, well anyone, but getting his own medicine thrown back at him was a sensation he didn’t know he liked or not. At the least, it showed that this was going to be an interesting night.

“Oh, hi Nicholas. Nice of you to join us... fashionably late I see.”

Took you long enough. He gave the redhead a sweet smile. “The hero always makes their appearance at the last minute.” And despite what everyone thought of him, he was the hero of his story, and sooner or later, TJ would become his heroine. Of course, that dependent solely on who would give this game up first.

“So this isn’t quite the privat--”

"Sorry to interrupt but I was wondering... Savannah, would you like to dance?”

If there was anything he didn’t like more than not being acknowledged, it was being interrupted. And of course, Talya Burnley was the source of the latter. And this time it was to ask Savannah to dance. If he wasn’t furious at the tall brunette, he might think it’s sweet. Maybe he still thought it was, but he was much too irritated to admit that -- even to himself. Thankfully, when they left and they whisked each other off to the dancefloor, that gave both Nicholas and TJ some breathing room. Although, whether that meant anything would actually happen in the immediate future remained to be seen.

He had to find a way to keep his composure, so he snagged one of the untouched solo cups of beer and gobbled nearly half of it down in record time. It tasted like ass but it was effective. “So how long has that been a thing?” Nicholas asked TJ, gesturing towards Savannah and Talya.

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

---

Rise & Shine

_{SIGMA CHI FRATERNITY HOUSE — SEATTLE UNIVERSITY}

Herc & Ben

---

Despite everything that happened at the Conclave and the general sense of dread and stress and that subtle feeling that everyone might die at the hands of Hera and her demented angry son of war, Heracles was feeling pretty spiffy when he woke up.

He was one of the few people in this world who responded well to the sounds of a morning bird that served as his alarm. No, this wasn’t a literal bird, but on his phone, he found a cool app, Rise and Shine, which had the feature of a regular alarm app but with the added benefit of having certain animal sounds. There were wild cats, dogs, the sound a goat makes when frightened, but Heracles was, if nothing else, a traditional God. And so he woke up to the proud crowing of a digitally-created rooster.

From then on, Heracles did everything Heracles did when he woke up before the sun did: he made a healthy breakfast. Since today was Saturday, that meant a spread of wheatcakes with a light drizzle of honey, a greek yogurt parfait, and a tall glass of soy milk, all of which were devoured fifteen minutes after posting a shot of it on Instagram. Thanks to that and his proud sponsor King Arthur’s Wheat Flour, which was never bleached and never bromated, he was going to find close to nine-thousand dollars in his bank account by tomorrow.

“Today’s going to be a great day!” He repeated to himself as he found himself out the door of Acropolis.

With his gym bag in the back seat of his red Ford F150 and the roaring engine sounding off as he left the upscale neighborhood that he and Apollo lived in, Heracles had the intention of going to the gym that was less than seven miles from his loft but then he had the thought of not wanting to work out alone, which brought him to a conversation he and Benten had the night before the conclave. Among other things, the conversation progressed onto how fit Herc was and just how out of shape Ben was. Whether it was a stupid suggestion then or a brilliant one, he didn’t know, but Heracles promised to help her out by being her gym buddy, and she agreed.

And that’s how he found himself back at Seattle U, walking in thigh-high shorts that showed off much of his well-toned legs and a matching, black tank. Thankfully for it being still relatively close from summer, it wasn’t that chilly but it still being morning, Heracles had the adrenaline of helping out a friend in dire need of his help.

After briskly walking for about ten minutes and asking around where Bentley Stark could be found, everyone he asked had told him at the Sigma Chi House and low and behold, there he was in front of it. As far as fraternity houses went, it wasn’t bad. Decent size and he even thought some decent parties must’ve been held here. And the thought that followed was how it paled in comparison to the wild times the OG fraternity held. Acropolis for life!

After he knocked a few times and had a slick back and forth with the guys who lived there, immediately they recognized him. Jackson Drake, the widely popular Instagram Influencer who had over a million subscribers and holder of two American Influencer Awards for Lifestyle Influencer of the year even though he technically wasn’t a lifestyle influencer. Still, he was known and that meant people wanted his photos.

Ten rounds of selfies later and one of his less-starstruck fans led him upstairs and to the room Bentley was sleeping in. He stood in front of her bed, watching her sleep for a few moments. Part of him was going to feel guilty for what he was about to do.

“Rise and shine!” He shouted, giving her bed a firm Leonidas, King of Sparta kick.

There was the sound of a babbling brook, flowing freely and without care to the world around it. The feeling of grass surrounded her, a featherlight feeling of fingertips trailing along her thighs, the wanton kiss against her lips, the breeze that played with their contrasting hair. They parted for only a moment, taking a breath, eyes filled with amorous passion

“You’re the most beautiful girl I know.” The words fell true, the brook seemed far away as Benten gazed into her lover’s eyes, cupping her cheek tenderly.

The lips of her liver moved but Ben missed the sound as a jolt went through her, a feeling of dread pitting in her stomach. Even her question fell silent on her ears as she felt the words flow from her mouth, the pounding of her heart was deafening in her ears, the scenery around her growing blurry, hazy through her panic. She reached for the lover that seemed a mile away now, shouting her name silently, eyes wide with fear. The lover she once saw was no more, instead, a hulking beast stood smug before her and opened its gnarly mouth to bellow-

Ben scrambles awake at the sudden intrusion, her back pressed to the headboard, looking around wildly for the monster that ruined her dreams. When her eyes landed on Heracles her shoulders slumped in relief, before tensing again after realizing she was in her room.

“What are you doing Jackson?” Irritation graced her tone as her eyes narrowed into a suspicious glare.

“What does it look like?” He backed away from her bed just enough so she could catch the glimpse of his outfit. “It’s Saturday, Ben! And you know what that means, right?” He left it open in hopes she would know.

Ben pursed her lips for a moment fighting the grogginess of her abrupt awakening. “Uhhhh… her eyes took in his appearance, he was wearing gym clothes and she was capable enough to at least put two and two together but wasn’t sure why he was here. “Okay, better question… why the fuck are you cock blocking dreamworld me to show off your bulging muscles? Did you get those shorts from GapKids®? they look like they’re going to burst around your quads dude.”

“Pfft, these are top of the line! Perfect for stretching, running, and they’re surprisingly comfy!” there was a sense of pride in his voice. “But more to the point, it’s leg day, Ben! So come on, get up!” He kicked her bed again but not with as much force as his first one did.

Ben’s thin patience was quickly running out, the second kick made her release a drawn-out sigh, willing herself to stay chill. Killing her bro was out of the picture, she wouldn’t survive prison, goddess or not. “Alright, alright, it’s obvious you’ve dropped one too many dumbbells on that ample head of yours, so I can forgive you for ruining my beauty sleep. Now, please, swiftly get the hell out so I can return to what I was doing.”

Heracles was starting to become annoyed but he wasn’t going to succumb to the inner-Zeus-like tantrum he’s been known to throw “But you promised! Remember? At the party a few nights ago. You said you would be my workout partner!”

“What? I did no such th-“ Ben was interrupted by her own flood of memories. During the party at Acropolis after the conclave she had drunkenly committed to working out with Heracles, and she had done so on camera and to her fans. A groan filled with her deepest regrets escaped her and she flung herself back against her bed, pulling her duvet over her face, “Dude, no one ever means anything they say when they’re drunk! Well… _{I always mean it when I tell Coco I want her to sit on my face…} but everything else is just bullshit dude. I’m busy today, maybe in my next life I’ll pursue being a bodybuilder with you.”

“Busy doing what?” He asked point-blank.

“I got a couple appointments, one in 75 seconds with going back to sleep and one at 3:45 with a cheesy Gordita crunch. Now if you wouldn’t mind, make sure to close the door all the way behind you. Byeee~” Ben pokes a hand out from under the covers and waved for a moment before getting comfortable again.

“I guess we’re doing this the hard way.”

Whether Ben was paying attention or not, the silence that followed should have been the first red flag. Heracles was a lot of things, but having the tendency to be quiet for no reason wasn’t one of them. When his yap stopped moving, either one of two things was about to happen: either he would leave you alone or something very bad was going to happen to someone in a short amount of time. Ben probably thought it was the former, but as he gripped her blanket with a firm grasp, in the following three seconds, it had been swiftly removed, exposing Ben in the shirt and shorts she had been wearing.

Ben had just about drifted back to sleep again when Herc ya led away her soft, sweet comfort. Goosebumps ran along her arms as the chill of the room crept along her exposed skin. A grumble left her as she pressed a pillow to her face, blocking out the light in the room, she could fall asleep like this if she really tried. Ben was adaptable to most situations and places, but that did not extend to the gym, “This is harassment! A targeted hate crime! I’ll call Athena if you don’t go away Herc, it’s illegal to be this committed to the gym. Do you want to go to jail again, you annoyingly fit bastard?”

He expected a fight, but what Ben was doing was just childish. “Oh, don’t be like that, Ben. You know Athena wouldn’t answer your call. Besides you made me a promise and who else will help you put some meat on those painfully-skinny legs of yours?” He asked her, pointing to her chicken legs. He always heard that negative reinforcement often produced positive results.

Ben moves the pillow from her face and gave a dramatic gasp, “How dare you-“ she threw the pillow with all her might at the beefcake, watching it thump against his head and fall to the ground. It was anticlimactic and did little to give her any sort of satisfaction, “body shame me in my own home. Don’t think I’ve forgot about the times you tried to put the moves on me Heracles! You didn’t have any problems with my chicken legs then! For the last time, I’m booked and busy today! Call back tomorrow to see if I can reschedule you!”

He had the partial thought of giving up, but now he wouldn’t be Heracles, Conqueror of the 12 Labors of Olympus if he had thrown in the towel the minute things became difficult. If she wasn’t happy with him now, Gods only knew just how furious she was going to become as soon as he did what he was going to. “Just remember, you forced me to.”

With guilt hanging high within him, Heracles took both of Ben’s legs with relative ease. It was fortunate for him that she wasn’t so athletically gifted. Pulling her from one end of the bed took no effort whatsoever. And then as he placed his hands carefully around her waist, he picked her weightless body and threw her over one of his shoulders, making sure he wasn’t touching her in places that could land him his own canceled party hashtag.

While Ben had doubled down on the “try me bitch” approach she hadn’t thought Herc would actually do it. The man was mighty, but mostly docile, intimidating from afar like a pitbull with its lip curled, but up close, just a cute little bully that wants to cuddle you and lick your face. The banshee-like cry that reverberated off the walls of the room was completely called for when Ben ended up tossed over Herc’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

”PUT ME DOWN WONDER BOY!” Bentley Stark shrieked trying to grab onto anything she could as Herc made for the door.

And anything she did had little to no effect in stopping Heracles from walking out of Ben’s messy room and into the hallway, halfway to the stairs. “Just calm down! You’re making this into a bigger thing than it needs to be!” It was clear Herc was growing fatigued of her fight, but he couldn’t deny that he was getting some satisfaction from it all.

Bentley put all her energy to thrashing in his hold, beating her hands against his back, and clawing at all the walls and door frames she could. To no avail did she free herself from Herc’s iron grip, and so she channeled the potato energy and grew slack against him. Bentley’s fingers folded into the only sign language she knew and flashed the big ‘fuck you’ to all her laughing frat brothers, ”I can’t believe I once called you traitors my brothers! No more, you’re all dead to me! Dead! You hear me?”

The front door was quickly approaching, and with that, her window for escape was becoming narrower. Just as she was getting her second wind the final knife wedged deep into her back, the sharp tip piercing her heart, “Et tu Brad?”

Bentley’s Big stood beside the front door with his arms casually crossed over his chest an amused shake of his head was a response to her childish antics, “Count this as a necessary evil. With how heavy you breath running up the stairs every time, and I’d rather not gamble whether you’ll survive your next climb.”

“How dare you defy fate! If it’s my time it’s my time. Now I’ll meet my end to the sound of gym rats releasing their mating cries as they hit a max rep. This betrayal hits the deepest, sleep with one eye open Bradley otherwise I’ll be coming for those brows!” Brad only offered a hearty chuckle as he opened the door for Jackson and gave an enthusiastic wave to Bently as he closed the door following their exit.

“Thanks man! I’ll have her back in a few hours!” Jackson gave Brad a gesture that resembled a friendly wave as he ran out the frat house, feet firmly planting against the steps. They were about seven yards from the frat house when Herc made the conscious decision to allow Ben to walk with him as he set her down. That and her constant wiggling had rendered it impossible for him to continue carrying her without growing frustrated with his friend. “There. Now it’s not so bad. We only have about fifty feet to the parking lot. You can do that, I’m sure!” He said to her in an encouraging voice.

Ben didn’t try to hide her pouting as she practically stomped beside Heracles, producing the only sound she gave in response to his “encouragement”. Meanwhile her mind was racing, calculating the possibilities of her making a break from him and successfully getting away. By the time they reached his truck she had concluded there was no escape from this and resigned herself to the death that awaited her.

“Let's make this as swift and painless as possible, alright?” Ben grumbled once she was situated comfortably in the passenger seat.

For a rather long moment of silence, Herc thought about saying something, maybe give Ben one last comment to mull over. But then he thought about how that would defeat the purpose of what he knew at its core was him wanting to spend time with one of his friends and helping them achieve an ideal body that would make basic acts such as walking up a flight of stairs not seem like a marathon. So he decided against it and just hopped into the driver’s side seat, letting the engine roar for a minute before they were Fitness City-bound.

“Trust me, this will be fun! I’m an excellent spotter!”