I am Jinn

Reunion

     Have you ever found something that you were exceptionally good at? Something that you knew you could excel at like no other? I wasn't sure if I was particularly good at anything, but Athena...Athena was good at commanding attention. Ares had been wild and volatile, but now he stood down in front of his sister. The young female jinni looked at me in calculation before pulling her sword back and bringing it down in an arc in front of me. 

     "You're not afraid of this. You do know I can end you, correct?" Athena asked with a smirk.

     "My people couldn't end me, what makes you think you could?" I asked with an equal smirk of amusement.

     "Let me kill him, Athena. Surely he's the one that made Apollo and Hercules soil themselves. Imagine the reward Father would give us," Ares suggested before standing next to his sister.

     "Or, you can be held accountable for this massacre and I will take him to Father. What made you massacre this village? Father is furious," Athena growled.

     "It's always my fault, isn't it? You're the goddess of war. Why don't you get any flack for the humans you kill or have killed in your name?" Ares asked in anger before lifting his sword. 

      Immediately, Athena placed her sword at Ares's neck and whispered, 

      "Do not assume that I will not kill you. You are a scourge amongst the gods, almost as bad as Hephaestus. Then again, at least Hephaestus is good at making swords and the like. You're good for nothing," Athena shook her head and turned her attention to me. "Now, identify yourself and what is this nonsense you keep spreading about us not being gods." 

     I had taken this moment to use my new post-Enlightenment reflexes and managed to steal Athena's sword, now menacingly bringing it close to her. She flew backwards in fear and landed a good thirty feet away from me. Ares growled and swung his sword at me, but I managed to deflect his blow and have my blade come dangerously close to his body as well. 

     "Ares! No!" Athena cried out as the jinni fell backwards to avoid the sword. Ares looked around wildly before reaching for his sword. He looked around in confusion once he realized that his sword was no longer in his hand. He had dropped while panicking for his life and given me an opportunity to now have both swords in my hands. 

     "Look at this," I smiled holding up both swords. "I've got two swords that can slay pseudo-gods and I have two pseudo-gods in front of me. It must be a sign from our Creator, or as you say, your father?" I taunted with a chuckle. 

     "Do you find this humorous? You could have killed us!" Athena yelled.

     "But-but-but gods can't die, right?" I asked in a mock naive tone.

     Athena's nostrils flared once she realized that I had the upper hand. She stood up straight and advanced towards me. It was obvious once again that these children had never been challenged and simply couldn't fathom what was happening to them right now. She reached for her sword, but never made contact. A stray bolt of lightening struck the ground between us, causing both of us to take a step back. I had dropped the swords at my feet in surprise and looked up towards the heavens. Athena gulped before pulling Ares to attention. Ares looked up at the sky in apprehension before looking at me in loathing. I wasn't sure what was happening, but knew that the lightening was from another jinni. I was really getting tired by the sheer number of my kind enthralled with the lie that we were gods. We were jinn. We were the same as Iblis, but that meant we had the ability to choose to be good or evil. We had free will, yet it seemed as if the current generation of jinn only wanted to embrace evil. I wanted all this madness to end, but I was not prepared for what happened next.

     Another bolt of lightening struck near my feet, obliterating the swords; an intentional miss to send a message. Following the strike, another jinni landed in front of Athena and Ares as the pair hung their heads in respect. I frowned and looked up at the jinni and felt as if my world had collapsed. My brother, my eldest brother, now stood in front of me. He had aged gracefully and looked nearly identical to the last time I saw him. His gaze was intense, but not the gentle gaze of the elder brother I remembered. Instead, all I could see was hatred and distaste in his eyes. 

     "How DARE you raise a sword to my children?!" Zeus roared. Electricity crackled around him, causing Athena and Ares to take another step back. 

     "Your children? You're the king?" I asked in disbelief. My brother was the one behind this insane setting. He was the father of the murdering psychopath that stood behind him. He was the father of the flying jinni near the lake. He was the father of the woman that had pulled a sword on me. My nieces and nephews were the ones behind this tyranny and at the apex of it all sat my brother. What had caused this? Why had my brother taught his children that they were gods?

     He looked at me with a frown and reached for my shoulder, but I stepped out of his reach. He bared his teeth before ordering his children to restrain me. Ares approached me with a grin, but Athena was apprehensive. 

     "Father, I think-." Athena began but fell silenced once Zeus interrupted her.

     "You are the goddess of wisdom, Athena. Yet, all your thinking couldn't stop this fool from this massacre? Must I babysit all of you?" Zeus asked in anger while grasping Athena violently. 

     "Zeus, she's your daughter. How can you be so...evil?" I asked in disbelief. My brother looked at me and I realized that he had no idea who I was. Had I changed so drastically or had his hatred for everything clouded his judgement?

     "You know my name, yet you do not bow in front of me. Reveal yourself. Your TRUE self," Zeus ordered. I smiled. I didn't even realize that I was still in my human form. He should have been able to see my light, but it seemed he wanted to see me simply as a jinni.  I closed my eyes and felt my body shift before opening them again. Zeus looked at me and then at his children. 

     "Impossible," Zeus whispered.

     "How do you burn so bright?" Athena asked curiously. 

     "This means nothing! I can take him, Father!" Ares roared. 

     "Enough!" Zeus yelled once more and threw a bolt of lightening at Ares. The young jinni managed to dodge the blow and looked at his father in anger. 

     "You know what I am," I whispered so only he could hear. 

     "There hasn't been one of you in centuries. I made sure," Zeus whispered before running his hand over his head in frustration.

     "Why have you lied to your children, Zeus? Why tell them you are gods?" I asked softly and realized my mistake as Zeus's eyes connected with mine.

     "We ARE gods!" Zeus roared. "My kind rules the elements and the humans beg. My kind gives them life or takes it away. We ARE gods."

     "And what of the jinn, Zeus? Did you warp all of them into whatever fantasy you are living? YOU will die one day. How will you face our Creator?" I asked in anger. This was not how we were raised, so how could Zeus do this?

     "I will not die. I leave that part of life to the humans. Restrain him and bring him to Olympus. I've had enough of this field and Ares, make sure you burn the bodies. The stench is already getting to me," Zeus growled before disappearing. I had no time to react as Athena deftly bound me with something and sighed. I had been so busy staring at my brother, that I didn't realize that my niece had been standing behind me for some time now. With me now in her control she tossed Ares a final look of disapproval. 

     "Clean this up. I have to take this one to Olympus," she growled and began our journey to Olympus.