Olympia: Planet of Men (Ch. 9)

Chapter Nine | Apollo

Radiant… Hermes had chosen this word very intentionally. 

The next few moments shook the very foundation of my worldview. All this time I had dismissed Hermes as a narcissistic mortal being. Garrus had said that he wasn’t exactly human, but I didn’t think much of it at the time. 

When Apollo stepped out of the shadows of the temple-like structure I expected to see a perfectly gorgeous man. What I absolutely didn’t expect was for Hermes’s description to be completely literal. 

The moment the light from our star touched his skin he began to shine. It was as if he had absorbed it and reflected it in all directions around him. The glow rippled beneath his epidermis looking much like sunlight at the bottom of a pool. His eyes weren’t immune to the effect either, both of them shone like a pair of pale yellow stars. 

The rest of his appearance, though not as awe inspiring, was still quite stunning. He had golden blonde hair and a perfectly thick uncut cock with a light dusting of blonde hair above it. He wore a thick flowing crimson cape and bracers. On his head he wore a modest golden crown that looked like a modern version of a laurel wreath. Finally, on his feet he had on golden sandals. Their tapered straps fit perfectly against his legs and spiraled upward; makinging it look like he was standing in metallic flames.

Around me, many guys had their mouths wide open. Jiho had covered his to contain his audible gasp. Derek had a shit-eating grin when he looked toward me. He was totally saying “I told you so”, without actually verbalizing it.

At that moment I thought about all the implications. I was staring at what very well may be the sun god from Ancient Greece. The rational part of my mind fought hard against the idea. If these really were gods, why were they not back on Earth? I also wondered about all the others. Where’s their father, Zeus? Before I could get too lost in all the questions I had, Apollo spoke…

“Welcome friends.”

His voice oozed power. It was deep, and loud. At the same time it had an angelic chorus like quality. It was truly inhuman.

“Welcome to a new life. 

Welcome to a new beginning.

Welcome to Olympia.

On our planet, you will never feel less than those around you. 

On this planet, every man can be exactly who he chooses to be. 

Your days of being a slave to someone else’s greed are forever gone. 

Your days of living in fear of rejection are behind you.

I’m thrilled to welcome you all to your new home.

…

I am deeply troubled that your arrival was so violently interrupted. As my brother mentioned, we are terribly sorry.

It is in this regard that I feel you all deserve an explanation. Seeing some of your reactions to my presence, I’m sure many of you haven’t delved too deeply in the history of Olympia, or my family. 

You may have just realized that Hermes and I are in fact among those referred to as ‘gods’ by ancient Earth civilizations. Though that description is far too generous. 

My family and I are simply from another world. Another universe, to be more specific. 

This may be difficult to grasp to some of you, but it’s important for you to understand that the cosmos you know isn’t the only one.

Billions of years ago, we lived on a planet called Titan in this other universe. My grandfather, Cronus, was the despotic ruler of a civilization spanning our entire galaxy. The elites of our world were gifted with unimaginable abilities through the marvels of our immense power. The trillions of individuals not among them were used as fodder for their every whim. 

My father and his brothers despised this world. They longed to see a society where everyone may thrive. Using my gifts, and with the help of technology, my family was able to escape to a new universe, this universe. 

Unfortunately, we knew this would anger my grandfather. I was created with the sole purpose of providing him with immeasurable energy. With it, he intended to spread his civilization beyond our galaxy. Conquering every living thing along the way. 

When I escaped with my family, we took that possibility away from him. We also took with us the knowledge of how to create another individual like myself.

…

Yesterday, one of your shuttles was attacked. The origin of the intruder is my home planet of Titan. It appears they’ve discovered a new way to amass the energy necessary to cross the fabric of reality. 

Fortunately there is no immediate cause for concern. Traversing dimensions is a one-way journey. We suspect the scouts were tasked with antagonizing my family and nothing more. 

We’re continuing to monitor the situation and have updated our scanners to detect this threat.

It’s my hope that you will all feel safe and secure here on Olympia.

Now… onto more pleasant things. 

Today’s the day you’re to settle into your new life.

Here you’re free to be your true self. You’re no longer bound by the chains that plagued your former society. Our world is evolved beyond the social ladders created by Earth’s economic systems. Every Olympian is equal with equal opportunity.”

Apollo started descending the steps as he continued.

“Here there are no kings, nor emperors. There are no power-hungry superiors of any kind. Please don’t let my appearance deceive you, I am one of you.”, he stepped off the final step as he finished. He was only a few feet away, in front of the crowd. 

Apollo extended his hand toward the guy standing in front of him. He hesitated, but reached out and grabbed Apollo’s glowing hand. They shook hands only briefly before the sun god pulled the man into an unexpected embrace. They quickly shared an intimate hug before Apollo pulled away and said something to him with a gorgeous smile. 

The mystical Greek figure repeated this interaction over and over as he made his way through the crowd. He stopped at every person along the way, making sure not to miss a single individual. Everyone kept their eyes on him as he walked through us all. He had gone all the way to the back of the crowd before heading back to the front where we were. 

It took about twenty minutes for him to get through everyone that he had greeted before us. 

Jiho and Trent were greeted first since they were standing somewhat behind us. Even as he approached I noticed just how radiant he really was. The air around him was exceedingly warm. If I stood close to him long enough I’m sure I’d start to sweat profusely.

“Welcome Derek”, I heard Apollo say after pulling away from their hug. Derek smiled and thanked him. 

“Hi Damon”, Apollo smiled as he greeted me with his outstretched hand. Seeing him up close like this was something of a religious experience. The aura around him looked more like a slow moving golden flame. The wisps of light evanesced as they gracefully floated away from his form. 

“Hi”, I replied nervously while reaching for his hand. The moment we touched I felt something like static electricity shooting through my arm. It’s so difficult to describe the sensation. It was clear that him being an immense source of energy was no exaggeration. It was almost like a shot of adrenaline. I felt in that moment, as though I could climb Mount Everest without losing my breath. 

Just as he did with the others he pulled me into a tight hug. I anticipated it and wrapped my arms around his large muscular torso. The same sensation from before bombarded me. I felt like a battery being charged for the first time. It was indescribable. At the same time I felt myself becoming incredibly aroused. My cock stiffened between us. 

The hug seemed to linger. I wasn’t sure if it was my senses slowing down time with the new experience or if he was hugging me longer than normal. When he finally pulled away he placed both hands on my shoulders and stared into my eyes. Behind the pale yellow glow I could see his true color. His irises looked like two glistening circular orange topazes with a bright white pupil.

Like the hug, his stare seemed to linger too, until he finally said something.

“Happy Birthday, Damon, and welcome to Olympia.”, he smiled as he spoke. 

He kept a hand on one of my shoulders as he turned to the people that once stood in front of us. He politely stepped between Derek and I to reach them. 

The two of us exchanged a glance after he moved on. Derek wore a dumbfounded expression. I’m sure I looked the same. We stood and watched silently as he continued greeting every single newcomer. Once he was somewhat out of earshot Trent expressed his amazement.

“Wow…”, he whispered.

“Yea…”, Jiho agreed. Derek and I just nodded. There was a pause as we continued observing before Jiho continued speaking. “Amazing he knew all of our names…”

“Seriously… … and he seemed to like you, Damon”, Derek added with a look of surprise. 

“What..?”, I was confused.

“I thought that was weird too.. it was like you were an old friend of his.”, Trent elaborated. “Kinda intimate.” 

I looked at Jiho for his opinion. He shook his head to agree with Trent. 

“I’m kinda jealous”, he admitted with a smile. 

“Birthday boy’s getting all the attention”, Derek teased. We all chuckled at his insinuation but I couldn’t help but dwell on my interaction with Apollo. Was it really because it was my Olympian birthday?

We didn’t say much more about it while we waited on the inter-dimensional being to finish greeting everybody. I paid more attention to the timing of his hugs and started to see what my friends were talking about. He definitely spent a little extra time hugging me. 

When he finished his rounds he went back to the marble steps in where he started. 

“Thank you gentlemen for being so patient.

It was a pleasure meeting every one of you face-to-face.”

As he scanned the crowd I could swear he made eye contact with me. I genuinely couldn’t tell for sure though, seeing as his eyes were obscured by the glowing halo of light.

“I must leave you all now, though I hope to see you in the future. 

My brother will direct you to the final step in your integration process. 

I wish you all the best.

Go and thrive.

Go and live.”

Apollo gracefully waved before turning and walking the rest of the way up the steps into the temple-like structure. He gave us all a wonderful view of his immaculate ass. It reminded me of the guy in Cafe Caduceus. It was covered in short blonde hair, which was quickly becoming my favorite.

As he ascended, his brother, Hermes descended the steps and stopped midway. He had a cheeky grin like he’d just helped his best friend get laid.

“What’d you think?

He’s marvelous right?”

He paused to observe our reaction. Lots of people just nodded. One guy was brave enough to give a wolf whistle in reply. 

“Right, ok boys. 

You’re going to head to the Social Services building behind you and to the left, at the end of the plaza. My friends behind you will lead you to the right place. 

Once you’re there, just like on Pegasus, you’ll meet up with an officer who will help you settle in. We’ll find you a home, and get you started in your search for occupations. 

Don’t stress, this process is far less formal. Bring a friend or two if you like!

Once you’re finished there… that’s it! 

Go and enjoy life!

…

Oh! I almost forgot the best part!

Tonight, we celebrate!

It’s not mandatory, but Apollon City always hosts one of the biggest parties in the galaxy for our new arrivals.

Head to the Symposia District later if you’re interested. You might even get to meet the host, Dionysus himself! My little brother throws the best parties.

If you really want to have a wild night, I recommend wearing some Talaria wings.”, he finished with a wink and a devious grin. 

“Hope to see you there!”, he waved before following Apollo into the temple. My friends and I exchanged looks, they all seemed as though they were silently plotting. I knew what they were thinking of course…

“Alright gentlemen, let’s get you settled in!”, one of the officials behind us called out. 

There were about ten of them leading us to the Social Services building. It took no time at all for us to cross the plaza. 

The building itself was less like an ancient temple and more like the White House. Unlike the home of the US president though, it had a more open exterior and far more columns all around it’s facade. It seemed to be more welcoming toward the outdoor atmosphere.

Our crowd of newcomers poured through the large semicircular porch and the rectangular opening into the massive foyer. Inside there were several tall palm trees in marble planters that lead your eye up to the vaulted glass sunroof. 

We were immediately guided into a spacious hallway on the right, then into a large empty room with a queue line much like the one on the space station. This chamber felt far less stuffy and futuristic however. The carefully crafted tiled hardwood floors and wide open windows made it feel cozy and inviting. The ceiling reminded me of the Louvre with its sculptural molding and painted murals.

“Line up here boys, this will go much faster than the first integration. I promise!”, the same officiant from before shouted.

We filed into the queue as instructed. Once the head of the line reached the end another officiant started directing guys to offices down two separate hallways.

The line did, in fact, move very quickly. There were apparently quite a few offices beyond what we could see. It wasn’t long at all before Trent was next in line.

“Hi there, just you or would you like to bring others?”, the man directing everyone asked. Trent looked back at Jiho who quickly nodded in agreement. He looked toward me and Derek. I hadn’t thought about joining them, but I didn’t see the harm in it. I shrugged when mine and Derek’s eyes met. He seemed to be indifferent as well when he nodded in Trent’s direction.

“The four of us, if that’s ok.”, Trent answered.

“Of course, makes this go a lot faster. Head on down the hallway on the left. There should be an empty office on the second floor. Take the first one available.”

“Thanks!”, Trent blurted out as he started walking. The rest of us thanked him as we walked past.

While walking through the hallway we could see guys in the midst of their final integration process. I chuckled when I noticed that every single one of them was talking to identical copies of Athenus. They all seemed to be in various stages of selecting their future residences through Sim technology. A few guys were sitting down with the AI locked in conversation. 

After passing around twenty commodious offices we found the staircase that led to the second floor. It was at the end of the hallways in a small atrium with a multistory opening to the outdoors lined with columns. From here one could continue to the other first floor hallway or head up to the second level. We did as instructed of course. We only passed two or three occupied offices before we found one that was completely empty and stepped inside.

“Hello again gentlemen!”, a familiar voice called out as we crossed the threshold. 

“Hey Athenus!”, Jiho cheered. The rest of us greeted him, but with a little less flair.

“Alright, no time to waste, let’s get you all a place to call home. Alright?”

His words kinda struck me in the moment. Up until this point I’d felt a little adrift. Mike and Trish’s was the last place I called home, but I never felt welcome there. I knew I wouldn’t feel that way here, but I never considered the word ‘home’ until that moment. It brought a smile to my face.

We all nodded in agreement. 

“Ok! So here’s how this works. You can either browse a virtual interface, just like in the Sims, or you can consult with me! Don’t be alarmed, I’m gonna have to bring in some extra hands to assist you all at once.”, he grinned mischievously as he finished speaking. 

In a bizarre display three new sets of arms unfurled from his originals. He resembled one of the multi-armed deities from Hindu mythology. Athenus even did a quick dance to solidify the likeness, before completely splitting into four versions of himself. 

“Right! So give yourselves some room, I can help each of you individually or you’re more than welcome to pair up and explore together.”

We ended up going with his latter suggestion and split up into groups of two. Derek and I wanted to discuss our options, and we both knew we wanted to live close to one another. Jiho and Trent seemed to be of a similar mindset.

“What do you two have in mind? Your options are nearly limitless. Do you want to live in the heart of Apollon City, or on a rural mountainous island?”, the AI queried as one of his counterparts stood silently next to him.

“I wouldn’t mind staying here in the city, I’m bored of rural.” Derek admitted. “What do you think?”

“I’ve always wanted to live close to the beach, I wouldn’t mind being here in the city as well.”, I added.

“Not to worry, there are hundreds of options both in the city and by the beach. Would you prefer to be near the dense inner core of downtown, the nightlife district of Symposia, or maybe something a little more relaxed and quiet? Keep in mind that Olympia has several modes of transportation that can get you anywhere in no time.”

Derek and I looked at one another to see if the other had an immediate opinion. I get the feeling he likes to party and enjoy himself, but something quiet and relaxing sounded nice. I also liked the idea of having a downtown view.

“It honestly doesn’t matter much to me, I’m sure whatever it is, it’ll be perfect”, Derek spoke up.

“I kinda agree, but… are there any art schools in Apollon City?”, I hesitantly asked, feeling like it might be a foolish question.

“Oh my yes, Parnassus School of Art and Design is widely known as the most beautiful school on the planet. Apollo himself gives lectures on both music and poetry there from time to time. It’s in the Arts District, between downtown and Symposia District. As it so happens, it’s right on the bay. Would you like me to show you what we have available there?”

I felt myself on the verge of swooning. Athenus had convinced me. I looked over at Derek to see if he had any reason to protest. He just nodded and grinned. I must’ve failed at hiding my excitement.

“Yea, sure!”, I chirped.

“Excellent, there are two towers within close proximity of the beaches. They each have multiple vacant units.”, as he spoke, a holographic projection appeared in front of him and his unspeaking twin. It showed an area next to the shore the size of a few city blocks with about a dozen skyscrapers.

“I think you two will be particularly interested in this one here…”, one of the towers right next to the beach became isolated and enlarged. It was like a tall twisting tapered flame dancing in defiance of gravity. From what I could see each level had sizable balconies covered in greenery. Without seeing the rooms themselves, I was in love.

“On the 82nd floor there are two available rooms, they’re the only two on that floor so the entire level would be yours to share. The balconies can be modified so that you’d have 360 access.”, he continued as the hologram further isolated itself to show the two units. The balcony from top-down looked like a bloated round pentagon with lots of green space between the edge and the interior quarters. The two rooms were half-circles that combined to create a cylindrical shape in the center with room for the elevator shaft in the middle. They were more like a large studio apartment than a typical sky-high condominium.

“Each room is equipped with Sim technology, much like your hotel room, so you’re free to change up the design to your liking-”

“Oh god yes.”, Derek interrupted. “Sorry… I think I’m sold.”

“Not a problem at all!”, Athenus assured him. “Damon?”

“Yea, I love it already!”

“Perfect, before I can register it, I just need you two to decide on which unit you’d each prefer. The only difference is the views. One faces the bay and Symposia District. The other, faces downtown.”

“You can have the one facing the bay.”, Derek quickly insisted with a smile.

“Sure!”, I agreed.

“Easy enough, they’re now registered to your citizen profiles! You’ll now be allowed to enter at any time. If you ever feel like you need a change of scenery, simply find me and I’ll get you sorted out.”

“Thanks!”, Derek and I simultaneously exclaimed.

“Any time, I believe your friends have found a place as well! Not too far, just on the other side of downtown.

Now, I’m going to split you two up real quick so we can decide on what you might want to do to keep yourself occupied. There’s no obligation to decide now, I’m just going to build a profile of your interests to see if I can recommend something that will make your life more enjoyable!”

“Okay”, I agreed while Derek nodded. I was excited for this part. I’m pretty sure Athenus knew exactly what I wanted to do.

We did as he suggested and split up once more so that each of us were in opposite corners of the office. Athenus summoned tall stools for us to sit on while he questioned us.

“Alright, I’m certain this won’t be a long conversation. You’ve already indicated where your interests lay! Would you like to enroll in the Parnassus School of Art and Design?”, my version of Athenus asked.

“Yes!”, I blurted out without hesitation. 

“I was quite sure that you did, but I had to ask!

So, that’s done, congratulations! Did you have a particular discipline in mind or would you like to explore your options?”

“Thanks!  Um… I wanted to study animation in California, but I don’t know how relevant that would be here…?”, I explained.

“I think you’ll find that every form of art has its place here. Olympian society is built on the freedom to express one’s self in any way. 

Having said that, though, I might suggest you take a more general approach. You might fall in love with an art form you never knew existed! If you find yourself still drawn to animation, well, there’s nothing to stop you from pursuing it.”

I felt so excited by his proposition. I loved animation, but I also wanted to see what else was out there.

“Sounds perfect! … when do I start?”, I prodded.

“Hah! I’ve given you some time to settle in and get acquainted with your new home. You start in twelve days. Take some time to explore the city, or even the planet! Also, I recommend visiting the various artistic festivals around the world. The Arts District hosts dozens of such events throughout the year! You’ll love it, I’m sure.”

“Awesome! I’m really excited.

Thanks for all of your help!”, I beamed in appreciation. 

“Any time, as always! 

That’s everything we need to take care of! You now have a place to call home, and you are enrolled in a fine institution. If you don’t mind waiting, your friends should be finished shortly. 

Before you go, though, I was instructed to give you a message.

You’ve been summoned to The Capitol to meet with Apollo.”

---

Thanks for reading! I really hope you enjoyed this short, yet meaty chapter. I’m sure you all have plenty of questions about what you just learned. Feel free to join the discussion on discord. I’m very active there and more than happy to respond to any queries that won’t spoil the story. 😉

A. Starbinder

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