Invasion of the Progenitors

An event nearly a millennia in the making, the invasion of the Progenitors set into motion the destruction of the Pantheon Hegemony and the formation of the Hellecian Sector as we know it.

Similar to the Hellecian's version of the Trojan War.

Background:

Following the creation of Karoj-Menos and her subsequent capture by the Pantheon, Hellestine received a dream: a mass of serpents slithering towards her and a scattered egg inside an empty Eagle's nest, four pillars protecting her from the coming serpent.

 Unable to interpret the greater context of the dream, Hellestine was driven to create four protectors who'd keep the universe from being destroyed.

However, the Pantheon stole her ability to create life and made her a prisoner to stave off their own prophecy of destruction at the hands of their offspring.

In order to compensate, Hellestine used her wits to trick the gods into birthing and raising the four protectors who'd save the universe. Unsure what the result of these unions might bring.  

Thus the progenitors of the Patrokonoi-Hellecia were born: Archaenus, Iodium, Aeonia & Dodros.

Suffering from her wounds and a mysterious sickness during the family's escape, Hellestine was uncertain whether she saved the universe or further ensured its destruction when she died.

Preparation:

Barely escaping with their lives, the progenitors planned the destruction of the Gods from inside the gas giant Dyloth.

Each progenitor had a task to complete: 

1. Archaenus would recruit his numerous tribes of offspring in and around Karoj-Menos to form the bulk of their army. Becoming the poster child and backbone of resistance against their Stable Lord masters across Karoj-Menos.
2. Aeonia and her children would create the technology and hardware for the invasion. Weapons and ships simple enough for primitives to build and operate with oversight. But powerful enough to keep Mycestians stable lords from reinforcing their hegemons.
3. Dodros and (with the help of Aeonia) his Lacdrian lieutenants would train their Hoplon shock troopers how to fight on land in a shield formation. He even personally traveling to the pits of Tartarus in a nearby black hole, freeing the monsters trapped inside.
4. Iodium and his administrators would deliver equipment and intelligence from the courts, temples, and Stable Lord palaces of the Pantheon to his siblings and their resistance cells. Often keeping his siblings' movements hidden from the gods, weakening soft spots in the gods' defense grid, sabotaging Pantheon loyalists, and intercepting potential turncoats. He'd even "exiled" capable Ionites from their stations at various temples to join their siblings' navy as capable navarchs and pilots.

By the time of the invasion, the Patrokonoi-Hellecia was born and ready to destroy the Pantheon.

The Plan:

The plan was to invade Karoj-Menos while the gods were transferring their consciousness into their new mechanical, golden bodies. Pulling Helios and his own sun into alignment in Karoj-Menos' congruent LaGrange points, Apollo will hold his Hamariot in place while the planet's defense grid siphons the hydrogen to power the transfer process.

An Ionite commander will smuggle Aeonia onto the planet. Killing Hephaestus' replacement on the golden throne project, she takes over his body and sabotages the throne.

Following the sabotage of the throne and before the alignment, the Patrokonic navy will disable Apollo's hamariot, hold the sun god in place and destroy any Mycestian ships.

Before the Mycestians on the ground can mobilize, the Hellecian resistance (led by Lacdrian commanders) would have sabotaged the Stables Palaces and pinned down Mycestian reinforcements from getting in the air or from protecting their masters.

The progenitors and a small regiment will land in the central courtyard and gain access the maintenance tunnels of the Golden Parthenon, thanks in part to Iodium.

Defeating their security detail and storming their inner sanctum, the twelve gods (weekend by the Golden Throne) will be no match for the progenitors armed with Plasma Weaponry powered by their Ichor.

Once the gods are taken prisoner, the progenitors will transfer hegemony of the Cosmic Aurora over to the Hellecians.

This is the plan the four progenitors agreed on. Little do they know, the surprises waiting for them planetside.

The Invasion Begins:

During the golden throne sabotage, Aeonia is confronted by her mother Aphrodite, they have a contest in seduction. Whoever can get the Ionite commander to pick whose the fairest has to sit on the throne. Despite being an ally in the invasion, the commander chooses Aphrodite.

In her rage, she kills the commander and pins Aphrodite to the throne as it sucks the Ichor out of her body and leaves her an immortal husk.

During the invasion, Archaenus' command ship disabled Apollo's hamariot while Aeonia's customized tri-decks created a COAG barrier to keep the god from leaving or adjusting his sun.

 Before he was trapped, Apollo unleashed a solar flare that damaged Archaenus' command ship, sending it back to the surface.

Seeing his father's ship crash to the planet, a detachment of Mycestian ship approaching, and his fleet breaking formation. Archaenus' prized heir: King Thesacles rallies the navy and pulverizes the Mycestian fleet while protecting their Aeonia's ships. 

Once the ships are destroyed, the faithful son takes a shuttle down to the surface to find his father.

In the halls of the palace, Iodium completes his tasks leading up to the invasion: enters the DST Accelerator Lanes hub with the god Hermes inside, slits his throat and collects his Ichor, deactivates the Accelerator Lanes, the defense grid, and unlocks the bay doors.

However, he goes to Hera's quarters to hide her from his siblings' onslaught when he learns a terrible secret.

Out on the battlefield, Thesacles finds his father alive but badly injured. The two fight side-by-side against the Mycestian defenders and the Titanic defenses imbedded into the God's fortress acropolis.

Just then, the loyal titans appear and beat back the invaders. Losing ground and ships by the score, Archaenus nearly calls a retreat when:

Dodros crashes to the surface, like a meteor falling to Earth. He single-handedly takes down the titans as him along with Archaenus and Thesacles fight their way into the fortress.

Cutting through the training grounds to meet up with Iodium, the trio stumble across Athena and Ares fighting each other to the death.

The two gods call on their former wards to aid them in ending their sibling rivalry forever (Athena=Archaenus, Ares=Dodros).

Instead, Dodros takes his helmet off and pleads one last time to his mother Athena to acknowledge him as her son.

Even with their world crumbling around them, Athena refuses as Archaenus joins her side and the two-on-two rivalry continues.

In the end, Ares defeats Athena in combat. Overcome with emotion, he neglects to see Dodros crush his skull with his bare hands.

He approaches Athena who begs for her life, offering him wisdom to build an empire that'll rival even the gods' hegemony. Dodros insists that she acknowledge him as her son. Before she can say the words:

Archaenus blows a hole through Athena's chest, collecting a vial of her Ichor and revealing the deception to take them out by winning their trust.

Furious, Dodros goes to kill them both when:

Iodium appears from the secret tunnel. He tells them the army and navy have pulled back, due to the rampage of the monsters above.

Ignoring their brother's words, he tells them their mother is still alive. Hearing her screams echo from the central acropolis, they follow Iodium.

The four of them sprint through the tunnels when: 

Dodros hears Aeonia calling for her. Unable to argue with the rock man, Dodros runs off towards Aeonia while Iodium, Archaenus and Thesacles.

The trio appear in the throne room, confronting Zeus & Hera/Hades/Poseidon who hold Hellestine hostage.

Dodros appears to find Aeonia safe and tampering with the planet's defense grid. She reveals her plan to siphon the hydrogen from both stars to reinvigorate her deteriorating physical state (see CHONPS Mysteries) and cause a twin supernovae that'll destroy this flawed planet.

Expecting him to stop her, Dodros just stands there, responding that she wants him to stop her to affirm her decision to end this planet's life.

Mentioning their mother is still alive and our brothers need their help. Conflicted, she agrees only and follows her brother after planting a device on the console.

Back in the throne room, the trio fight against the trio of gods with Hera holding Hellestine hostage.

Eventually, Hades pins Iodium while Poseidon pins Thesacles to the ground. Holding Archaenus in one hand, Zeus charges a lightning bolt and asks his son to choose which one of his family should die:

His heir and pride of his life or the twin brother he sent to Hades all those years ago.

Before he can choose, Dodros drops down and blocks the bolt with his shield.

The fight continues before long, Thesacles and Iodium restrain Hades together, Dodros restrains Poseidon, and with all his remaining strength Archaenus sacrifices himself to severely wound the King of the Gods.

Looking at Zeus and a dead Archaenus, Thesacles snaps. He murders Hades as Dodros then kills Poseidon. He looks at a terrified Hera, holding a laughing Hellestine.

The details at this point are hazy, due to the number of retellings of this story (see Festival of Shattered Gold). Hera gets injured somehow as she drops Hellestine to the ground. Dodros and Thesacles go to Hellestine while Iodium go to Hera.

Aeonia stands over Zeus, holding a remote device.

After a tense exchange, Iodium tells Hera to drop the illusion, revealing the real Hera is in the arms of Dodros and Thesacles. And the injured Hera is the real Hellestine, dying from her wounds.

Aeonia and the others rush to their mother. She gives them the prophecy that drove her to their creation, only to promise have them promise to keep the universe from returning to The Void.

They all agree, except for Aeonia who hesitates before Hellestine dies. No one is certain whose to blame for Hellestine's death. What is certain is that Hera gave the Hellecians everything they needed to murder Zeus and the other gods.

Hera manipulated through the Cosmic Aurora by using the COAG-powered ship and Ichor weaponry she gave them. Now that the deed is done, she influences the Aurora to have the four kill themselves when:

In orbit, Helios is pulled out of its LaGrange point and drifts on a collision course with Apollo, the hydrogen beam cutting a deep gash in the planet's crust and shaking the palace.

Just then, a multi-eyed giant breaks through the wall to attack the progenitors. Giving Hera and Zeus a chance to escape.

The last thing Hellestine sees before she dies is Zeus transforming into an eagle to leave his nest.

Fleeing to their shuttles with their mother's body, Aeonia tries to convince Dodros to come with her. Instead, the honor-bound warrior chooses to fulfill his promise to Tartarus and free the creatures inside by releasing the Baetylus Stone keeping them in this pocket dimension.

As a result, Dodros was never seen again. Survived by his Lacdrian commanders, his brother Iodium, cousin King Thesacles and his precious sister Aeonia.

Aftermath:

The following reaction caused the Helio-Apollan Binary Supernovae, a dual explosion so great it destroyed 30% of the solar system-sized planet's landmass, new stars, and new clusters. All detailed in the Topographical History of the Sector. 

While their children went on to form the Patrokonoi-Hellecia as it's new hegemons.

The four discovered the cost of defying the Cosmic Aurora/Creation. As a result, the progenitors lived short and miserable lives. And their children had to suffer through the Age of Anarchy, where the new found chaos formed war bands who raided and plundered the remnants of Karoj-Menos.

Leading to the biggest atrocity of them all: The Weeping Grove Massacre.

Excluding the millions of dead Hellecians, slaughtered children of the old hegemony, and the destruction of their home. The death toll of the invasion is as follows:

Gods:	Killed  (before/during invasion)	Killed  (during or after MWG)	Unknown
Zeus		X
Hera		X
Hades	X
Poseidon	X
Apollo			X
Artemis			X
Demeter		X
Persephone		X
Aphrodite	X
Hephaestus	X
Ares	X
Athena	X
Dionysus			X
Hellecians:
Archaenus	X
Dodros	X
Aeonia		X
Iodium			X

Conflict Type

Siege