Stockholm, Sweden
D.P. Sidewinder sat on the veranda on the balcony outside his penthouse apartment. He held a cup of hot Darjeeling tea in his right hand and a copy of Nikola Tesla's My Inventions - his favorite book - in his left. His reading glasses were low on his nose as he pored over the pages. On the table beside him were several pieces of machinery - likely the makings of a new invention of some sort.
Sidewinder sipped his tea and pulled at his cardigan as the gentle breeze that blew over the balcony began to pick up. The pages of Tesla's autobiography began to flip wildly as the breeze grew to a full-on wind. Abandoning both book and tea, Sidewinder rose and began to make his way toward his apartment...
...only to find his way blocked by a large black man in an impeccable suit. At the moment their eyes met, the winds died outright. The large man smiled.
"Hello, Daedalus," he said with a grin. "Long time, no see."
"Lord Aeolus?" he said inquisitively. The Wind King nodded. "H-how can this be?"
Aeolus said nothing, merely arched his eyebrow. Daedalus Sidewinder began to sweat.
"I... I was unaware, sir, that you were even aware of my existence. It has been many years since..." Sidewinder was becoming flustered, which flustered him even more. "Would you care for some tea, Wind-Keeper?"
"Unfortunately, Inventor, this is not a social call," Aeolus said. "I have come to issue you a warning."
Fear swelled in Daedalus' eyes. "Y-you're going to tell them I'm here, aren't you? The Pantheon! Please, Wind King, please! I beg of you! Do not tell Zeus that I am here!"
"Zeus is dead." Aeolus's words cut the man to his very core. A shiver went down Daedalus's spine as he heard them.
"...what?" he barely whispered.
"The Pantheon has been destroyed," Aeolus said. "We few who remain seek to pay back their faceless destroyer, known to us only as the Dark One."
"And... and why have you come to me?" Daedalus asked. "Surely, the gods would not require an invention of me fit to destroy one of their own?"
"Not in the sense you take, Inventor," Aeolus said. "We have need of your only son, Icarus."
"Icarus?" Daedalus asked, puzzled. Then, his eyes widened in realization. "You wish to have Icarus join you?"
"We do. He is a skilled fighter and his abilities will be of use to us."
"Y-you can't! Lord Aeolus, I beg you! He is not ready!"
"This is not a request, Daedalus," Aeolus said. "I have not come seeking permission. This is... a courtesy call." The Wind-Keeper's lips folded into a smile. "Just to let you know what will be going on with your son."
"Y-you can't mean...!"
A sudden gust of wind silenced Sidewinder, blasting him directly in the face. Closing his eyes, he waited until the momentary gale had subsided before opening his eyes again. Aeolus was gone.
Daedalus P. Sidewinder stood alone on the veranda on the balcony outside his penthouse apartment. A cup of Darjeeling tea and a copy of Nikola Tesla's My Inventions sat abandoned a few feet away, next to a table containing scattered parts of machinery that may or may not have been a new invention.
There was no breeze.
He had never felt more alone.
