Weeping Grove Massacre

While a large majority of the Pantheon died during the Invasion of the Progenitors and most were imprisoned, a remnant of the Pantheon still remained after the Helio-Apollan Binary Supernovae.

The ones who survived fled to the safety of Demeter's temple within the Weeping Grove of the newly-formed Dodonan Roots cluster; protected by the Eropsyikki: butterfly guardians of Demeter's gardens along with the praying mantis-like Thesprotines, the jumble of weaving DST Accelerator Lanes and massive root systems branching through planets from the goddess' sacred oak tree (stolen from the namesake Titan Dione)

The Massacre at the Weeping Grove is the symbolic failure of the Patrokonoi-Hellecia to break the prophesy and host a semi-peaceful transition of power. Only to devolve into a wholesale slaughter of the remaining gods and a great Dyasma or curse placed on the Ionites.

Origins:

While the Invasion of the Progenitors had to happen in order to unseat the Pantheon as hegemons, the Hellecians' goal wasn't to exterminate the gods initially.

Instead, they sought to break the precedent of "new exterminating the old" by having a peaceful resolution and transition of power to the new generation.

Given external and internal pressures from their vassal Mixolastians and other Hellecians to punish the gods for their crimes, the Patrokonoi were resolute on peaceful negotiations.

A Sacred Oath:

However, The remaining gods didn't buy their altruism, refusing to meet with the murderers of their loved ones and home.

The only Hellecians allowed access inside the Weeping Grove were Iodium and his Ionites, given their Sacred Oaths of Service to the Pantheon.

While personally allowing himself to be imprisoned by his step-mother to show his solidarity, his people serviced the sanctuaries and sacred places like they had before. All while the chaos of The Age of Anarchy raged on outside their grove.

While the broken Patrokonic fleet either turned into bands of raiders or relief forces, Iodium was on the inside trying to convince his former mother to accept terms. Not as an admission of their own crimes rather to break the cycle of destruction and work together to rebuild the sector.

Over time, All except Hera decided to shared governance with the Patrokonoi in exchange for their lives, the freedom of their followers and Iodium to step down as leader of the Ionites to be their hostage for eternity.

In the pursuit of peace, Iodium agreed.

A Grave Misunderstanding:

During the invasion, Eurystion: a corrupt Stable Lord of the Roots region, secretly aligned himself with the progenitors to secure his position so he could chop down Demeter's sacred grove.

The subsequent chaos and sudden occupation by nearly every surviving deity (including Demeter) enraged the scheming Mycestian to no end.

However, Eurystion saw an opportunity to prove his value to the new hegemony.

In his stables, he bred and kept what would be the first iterations of the Thesprotines.

While primitive Thesprotines have existed in the ground for centuries, hunting aphids and other parasites feeding off Demeter's sacred grove. Eurystion's creatures were different.

They were intelligent, strong, fast, discrete, virile, blood thirsty, and trained to follow his commands. These monsters could be released discreetly inside the Grove, replace the docile ones and slaughter the remaining goddesses in their beds.

He just needed the Patrokonoi's blessing and promise to reward him properly.

The remaining progenitors did not give Eurystion their blessing, let alone their time. They were too busy stabilizing the sector to entertain a greedy vassal.

Embittered, Eurystion slunk back to his palace. However, he was approached by someone, to this day, no one can verify.

The timing of Iodium's departure/imprisonment inside the Grove to this "supposed" meeting has made the Ionite progenitor the most likely suspect.

Whoever it was, this person gave Eurystion the assurance he needed to release his Thesprotines into the Grove.

Over time, their numbers swelled as Iodium talked the remaining goddesses into meeting the Patrokonic leadership to discuss terms.

The Blood Bath:

Over thirteen years after the destruction of Karoj-Menos, the remaining goddesses and the Patrokonoi's leadership met at the base of the Dodonan Oak unarmed and alone with Iodium mediating between the two parties.

Seeing the way the wind was blowing, Hera refused to join the meeting and stayed in the temple.

It was on that day, Eurystion made his move.

Right before the goddesses signed, he strolled out into the clearing and chopped down one of Demeter's trees before the goddess' very eyes.

At that signal, camouflaged Thesprotines sprung from their hiding places and slaughtered everyone (except the Patrokonic leadership).

Horrified, Iodium and his Ionite attendants led Demeter, Hestia & Persephone back inside the temple chambers while their followers were hunted and chased deep into the Grove.

Here the details get a little murky, its believed that Iodium and his attendants (seeing the way the wind was blowing) broke their oaths and stabbed the goddesses to death. Or his attendants acted on their own ambition.

Regardless, the three goddesses lay dead in their chambers while the Iodium and his children stood over the dead goddesses.

Aftermath:

Even though the goddesses were the enemy and killing them secured their position as hegemons in the sector. The Hellecians took their Oaths seriously, as breaking it could lay a Dyasma on their Ichor

Either way, the aftermath of the massacre painted the Patrokonoi as another band of barbarians and oath breakers. Seeing as Delphystes was incinerated by the Thermetolians and the other holy sites were destroyed, the sacred oak at Dodona was the only holy site left from the Pantheon.

Over time, they could've gotten rid of the tree and the rest of the Pantheon quietly.

After Eurystion's misstep and the cold-blooded murder of the three goddesses, they're morally responsible to keep the withering oak alive to preserve the memory of the carnage that happened there.

Because of his part to play, Eurystion contracted a Dyasma that cursed him with eternal hunger. One that drove him to sell his fortune, titles, children, everything he had for food until all he eventually ate himself.

For the Ionites part in breaking their Oaths of Service, Iodium received all the blame for the planning of the murders and declared his descendants as outcasts and oath breakers.

While Hera slipped away in the confusion, she was later tracked down and caught by her disgraced half-son and his children aboard The Psygorellius.

Placed on the golden throne that sapped the life from her family, she laid a Dyasma on Iodium and his descendants.

Still feeling one last shred of love for her favorite boy, she named no bond holder for this curse and gave her son the ten conditions needed to break the curse before she sapped the life from herself.

This curse became known as the "10 Labors of Iodium." And to this day, it remains unbroken.

As a result, the Ionites wander the stars in their massive Flotilla trying to solve Hera's riddles with no planet to call their home, no harvest to claim as theirs, and no hearth to call their own.

It wouldn't be until the invasion of the Perxis-Sadem the sector could band together until the Patrokonoi-Hellecia to drive the invaders out of their sector.

Date of Event: 13 AFH

Parties Involved:

• Hera
• Demeter
• Persephone
• Hestia
• Iodium
• Thesprotines

Location: Dodonan Roots

Significance of Event: The complete & murderous demise of the Pantheon