1) The Furies view crimes committed by Diamos prior to becoming the God of Peace, including violent outbursts as a child. 2) Diamos' mother Arrilla worries about his temper, but his father Ares wants him and his brother Dalen to become great warriors. 3) After Arrilla and Diamos are killed in a fire set by villagers, Ares saves Diamos' soul by placing it in Dalen's body. Dalen must now contend with his homicidal brother living within him.

1. {
The Quest For Peace
Interlude Chapter 1: The Sins of the Past

3. In the Hall of Mirrors, the three Furies have used their divine powers to view the crimes of the ones
that intend to punish, to judge what their punishment shall be. In this case, what Diamos did
before he became the God of Peace when he was an evil and angry soul forcibly confined into the
body of his twin brother, the God of War Dalen by their father Ares.
Alecto: We shall view the crimes of Diamos sisters; the Sins of his Past shall be illuminated
by the divine power of the mirrors.
Tisiphone: For here is where we decide their punishments...
Megaera: And we will show the descendants just what we mean by Divine Punishment....

4. The mirrors shimmered and revealed the beginning of what was to come....30 years ago in the rural farming area of
Hidden City the image of his parents, Ares and Arrilla came in.
Arrilla: Ares, I needed to see you it's about the boys....
Ares: How many times have I told you Arrilla, don't call on me during the daytime where anyone can
see me here consorting with a mortal!! I have a rep to protect you know.
Arrilla: But the boys...
Ares sighed. "Alright, what about them is so important that you couldn't wait until dark to call me?"
Arrilla: It's Diamos, I'm worried about him and the way he's acting out. Just today he threw a tantrum
in the bakery shop and started attacking Dalen right in front of the whole store...

5. Diamos: Mommy, I want these cookies. Buy them for me.
Arrilla: Dee, it's your birthday tonight you get cake you don't need to have cookies now.
Diamos: But I WANT THEM NOW!!! I don't want smelly old cake!!!
Arrilla: Dee, please don't make a scene....
Diamos: I WANT THEM NOW!!!!

6. Dalen: Stop that Diamos!! Mommy said we have to behave when we're out.
Diamos: I don't care!! I WANT COOKIES!!!
Dalen: We're getting cake tonight, that's way better than dumb cookies.
Diamos: Who cares!!! I want cookies!!!

7. With the speed of a half god, Diamos's fist came flying towards Dalen. Some of the other
customers gasped and began to whisper about them.
"It's them the Demon Children of Arrilla Cutler." One whispered.
"How can she expose innocent people to those demons?" Another said.
Arrilla turned just in time to prevent Diamos from destroying the whole place.
Arrilla: Oh gods not now!!!

8. Dalen: DIAMOS!! LOOK WHAT YOU DID!!
Diamos: So what? Why do we have to act like every other weak mortal in this sorry
place? We're half gods!! We should be ruling them!!
Dalen: Shut up!!! Do you want us to get killed???
Arrilla: Boys, please....
So I grabbed them by the arms and hauled them out of the bakery as fast as I could.

9. Ares: Diamos is right though, why do they have to pretend to be something they aren't?
True, I wouldn't have chosen such a public place to show off in, but boys will be boys
Arrilla.
Arrilla: Maybe if you were around more....they wouldn't be acting out so much.
She immediately regretted saying that to him.
Ares: You have a short memory don't you? I said I don't want to be seen down here, no
one can know they're my boys. One day they'll grow up to be powerful like me.

10. Arrilla narrowed her piercing purple eyes at him....
Arrilla: Ares, I don't want my boys to grow up and be blood thirsty killers like you. I want them to grow
up to help people with their powers.
Ares let out a cold, harsh laugh: this was too funny.
Ares: Honey, please. They're the sons of the God of War, what did you expect them to be? Weak-ass
daisy pushing peddlers of peace? No, my boys will become great warriors and we'll conquer this world
for everything it's worth. It'll be just like the old days when warriors shaped the world and ruled it, I
vowed to never lose another son to the pathetic cause of good. Hercules stole Evander from me with his
misguided notions of using his power for good and helping the weak. Now that he's out of the way, I'll
make sure they become what they're meant to be.
Arrilla was furious beyond words, but she was only mortal what chance did she have against a god? They were his
boys as much as they were hers.

11. Arrilla: But Ares...what's so wrong with being a cause for good? We have two boys, why
do both of them have to be warriors? Dalen is a sweet boy, very gentle I can't imagine him
being anything else. And Diamos...I love him too but his temper is out of control, his
powers are far stronger than Dalen's. I don't want to be known as the mother of a war
lord.
Ares: I know, Diamos is far stronger than Dalen but that's not the point. They're twins
they belong together on the same side. And I will do whatever I can to make sure of that.
Arrilla: Also, my father has been pressuring me to remarry. He feels that a strong father
figure in Diamos's life will help settle him down.
Arrilla looked up at him, the cold rage in his brown eyes chilled her to the bone....

12. Ares: Baby, listen. I will only say this once: no other man will ever share your bed as long
as I live, no other man will ever have a hand in raising my boys but me, you are mine.
Don't forget that. Dalen and Diamos will become warriors and you will not stop me, got it?
He stroked her cheek, and she instantly felt weak in the knees. No other man could ever make her feel
as Ares did, his touch was powerful and gentle at the same time. She loved him more than anything
in the world aside from her boys. His touch was pure power, arousing, like a powerful electric
current running through he very soul, the touch of a god. No mere mortal man could ever hope to
get close to what Ares made her feel.
Arrilla: Ares....

13. Ares took her hand and kissed it gently, all fight and anger she had faded quickly as she gave into
his touch.
Ares: There's my girl. I have to get going now, I've been down here too long already. I'll be
back for the boys' birthday tonight though and when they're asleep, I'll show you what a
celebration really means....
Arrilla: Alright, I can't even remember what I was so mad about in the first place.
Ares: It was nothing, trust me baby. I'll see you.
With that, he vanished leaving her feeling really warm all of a sudden.

14. However, all was not forgotten as easily as Arrilla thought; the townspeople had had
enough of the violent and destructive outbursts caused by Diamos's temper and decided
to take matters into their own hands. They formed a lynch mob and came storming onto
her farm, when she was in the root cellar in the barn they pushed her down the stairs
from behind. One of them threw a lit torch down after her and the rest sealed up the door.
The dry grain and horse hay in the cellar fed the fire and it soon became a raging inferno;
little did they know that Diamos had gone in with her and he too was burned alive.

15. Her tortured screams reached Ares too late; when he finally made it there, his uncle Hades had
already arrived to collect their souls. Ares pleaded with him to spare their lives and to return them
to him, but Hades refused. Ares actually got down on his knees and begged him to spare them,
Hades finally took pity on his nephew and gave him a choice; he could have one of them back, but
only one. Ares chose Diamos to save but his body was too badly damaged to restore. Ares saw only
one option, he took the glowing orb of his son's soul and held it gently in his hands then he placed
the soul inside Dalen's body to save it. Hades took Arrilla's soul with him and opened the door to
the Underworld, Ares picked up Dalen and carried him to bed. He was all Dalen had now and
unfortunately he couldn't be there for him as much as he should, if he was then everyone would
know that Dalen was his son, which he didn't want.

16. So Ares did what he felt he had to, he left the newly teened Dalen alone and only visited him occasionally to
make sure his progress was coming along. Like many other half god children in Hidden City, who either
lost their mortal parent or were abandoned by them, Dalen was left to raise himself on the streets. Only
with Dalen, he was never alone.
Dalen: So it was you then?
Diamos: Of course it was moron!! You were acting too nice to those people!! I had to show them
who was boss.
Dalen: You can't just oust me out of control of MY body whenever you feel the urge!!

17. Diamos: Idiot; that's OUR body not just yours. You're lucky we're alone here so
no one can see you talking to yourself.
Dalen: Right, because I'm SO blessed to have my psychotic twin brother living
in my body that he can take over whenever he wants and that only I can see
him. They're already afraid me because of what you do when you're in control.
Diamos: We're half gods; they should fear us. They persecute us, torture us,
even try to kill us. I'm paying them back for it.

18. Dalen: You don't have to hurt them though, they're only protecting themselves.
Diamos: By the gods, how the hell did I ever get stuck with such a loser brother like you?
Dalen: Mom never wanted us to become evil, she told us that every day when we were
young.
Diamos's eyes narrowed; he hated it when Dalen brought up their mom.
Diamos: Don't you DARE speak of her!! She got me killed and stuck inside you!!

19. Dalen: No, you went with her to argue some more about the damn cookies you
never got. And dad put you inside me not her.
Diamos: I would have killed those assholes if I had survived, they tried to kill
me!!
Dalen: Right so now you use my body to hurt them.
Diamos: They deserve it; they killed me. And I will hunt down and kill every
last mortal in this wretched city to make them pay for it...

20. Diamos: If I had hands, I'd so punch you in the face right now. You make me sick.
Dalen: Well you don't so you can't and besides, the last thing we need is to be fighting
and destroying Athena's temple here. It's bad enough the mortals hate us, we don't need
the wrath of the gods on our heads too.
Diamos: Oh please, dad would never let the other gods lay a finger on us. We're his
warriors, the ones who'll conquer this city, then the entire country of Greece and when
we're done here, the world. The God of War will become a symbol of fear and destruction
once again.

21. Dalen: This modern world has no place for us anymore brother, they don't even
believe in the Olympians outside of Hidden City anymore, it's all about the One
God of the Israelites now, the Christian god.
Diamos: So we'll remind them; this futuristic world is rotting away, it's time to
bring back what worked before.
Dalen: It didn't work before, the Olympians fell remember?
Diamos: Times change. We have a much greater ability to do serious damage in
this day and age than our parents’ generation did way back then.

22. After night fell and Diamos had gotten tired of badgering him, Dalen went into the Temple of Zeus
which had been maintained by the Hidden City people. Dalen always found it peaceful here, quiet
even. He could write in his journal here and no one would disturb him for hours on end, he loved it
here.
"Grandpa, what will I do? Dee's so angry and violent when he's in control of me and all I
can do is watch from my cage in my head."
He always expected Zeus to answer, but he never did. The only time he spoke to his grandfather was
when Ares let him go with him to Olympus, at least when he was allowed to. The other gods got
upset when Zeus told them that they couldn't bring their kids with them there, so he made a rule
that said only full gods would be allowed into the halls of Olympus from now on.

23. Dalen sighed and stoked the fire by the statue, it got cold here at night despite the
tropical climate of the city. He decided to head home, it was late after all.
"Hang on a minute, someone's here that I'd love to greet."
Dalen: Oh no, I'm not letting you out again you psycho!!"
"Try and stop me weakling."

24. Diamos forced Dalen back and took over the body. He ran out to greet his nemesis,
Malcolm Landgrabb, the arrogant mortal who thought he could just tear through his
family's farm whenever he pleased.
"I knew I smelled a loser."
"HOW DARE YOU!!!"

25. "Oh I dare, and if you ever try to take my home away again next time I'll do
more than just shock you, I'll kill you."
"Why do you have to make enemies with everyone?"
"Shut up loser, I'm enjoying this."
Katy: Poor boy has lost his mind, like me....where am I again?

26. If shocking greedy land sharks wasn't enough for Dee, he always had the mortals who
dared to set foot on the farm.
"Say that again you little bitch!!! I dare you!!!"
"You're crazy you know that!!! A real nut job!!"
"You have no idea how stupid that was...."

27. "As stupid as this?" *whack*
Diamos was caught off guard by her, but only at first. Dalen winced as he felt the surge
of power erupt from within his body.
"You'll regret that....“
“Dee, don’t….please.”

28. Diamos heard a pop as Ares appeared in the room with him, just in time it seemed.
"Son are you going to let that mortal get the upper hand on you? KILL HER!!"
Ares cried.
"I plan to father, just watch.“
“No! Dee not again! I can’t stand this!”

29. Ares stepped out of the way as Diamos rounded on her and with a single force of his will he sent powerful
electric currents surging through the poor girl's body, he smiled cruelly as she fell to her knees twitching and
shaking. The electricity overwhelmed her nervous system and fried her brain in its own juices. Dalen turned
away; he couldn't believe what his brother had just done, he killed someone.
"Now who's stupid bitch? I told you that you would regret it."
"My gods...what have you done?"
"What had to be done brother, teaching this mortal piss ant who's the boss."
Ares: Atta boy!! Way to go son!!

30. "This is too easy."
Ares: Don't hesitate to show the mortals who's in charge around here boy, they have to
know who they're dealing with.
"I plan to from now on father, I'll be that warrior you want me to be you wait and see."
"Not if I can help it you won't..."
"And what can you do about it brother?"
"A lot."

31. The sight of her lifeless body before him filled Diamos with such giddy glee that if
Dalen had his stomach, he would wretch. His brother enjoyed killing that girl, he got
some sort of sick pleasure from it. It terrified him that he was capable of doing the same
thing, he had the same power of a god that Diamos had. Dalen was not as strong as his
twin but if he was pushed far enough he could become as evil and corrupted as him. If
Ares had his way, he would be...