Stas Bushuev - Ahead of the Game

"Ha, me, a god? Not likely, it’s not like I’m going to live forever," he answered.

"That’s where you’re wrong. Remember when you visited me and ate and drank with me?" said a voice behind them. Turning around, Jeff saw Hades standing there.

"Uh… yeah, when I visited your home," Jeff replied.

"Well, that was ambrosia. It makes you immortal. I didn’t know if Zeus would bring you back or not and I didn’t want to see you die, lad," Hades told him. Shocked, Jeff just stared at the god. Nobody had told him about that.

"But what about Holly and Sara, I won’t want to live without them," Jeff asked.

"My boy, if you can gain immortality by eating ambrosia, what makes you think they can’t too?" Hades told him, laughing at the expression on Jeff’s face. Relaxing then, Jeff decided being immortal might be kind of nice.

"Jeff, here’s your prize," Growled a voice from behind.

"You can do better than that. You could at least be a little more gracious about it," Hera told her spouse.

"Okay, okay. Congratulations, here is your reward for winning," Zeus told Jeff, holding a box out to him. Looking inside, Jeff saw a laurel wreath inside. Disappointed, Jeff couldn’t believe all he got for winning Zeus' game was a laurel wreath.

"Go ahead, tell him the rest," Hera told Zeus, poking him in the ribs.

"As winner of the game, you are also entitled to live on Mount Olympus with the rest of us, as are the rest of your family. I don’t think we can afford to have the game anymore or we might start getting a little crowded there," Zeus said, growling at the last.

"What about the rest of them, Leandra and the rest of them?" Jeff asked.

"They’re already living there. Well, except for Diana, but since she is carrying your son, she will be considered as part of your family," Zeus told them. "A son? Diana is having a boy? That’s great, how about the rest of them?" Jeff asked.

"Well, Sara will be giving you a daughter and Holly is carrying two daughters for you," Zeus replied. Stunned, Jeff just looked at the mothers of his children, excited at the prospect of fatherhood.

"I will tell you one thing, though. Take good care of them. They will be going through trials of their own, but not of our making. The mortals will cause this problem. I can’t tell you what it will be, but your children are going to be very important then," Zeus warned.

Jeff wasn’t sure what Zeus meant by that, but he would guard his family with his life. It hadn’t been too long ago that Jeff wondered what he would be doing with his life, but now he could truly say, he was ahead of the game.

I would like to thank everyone who helped me with advice and encouragement. Most especially, I want to thank Ice Phoenix for his patience and editing skills, Black Rose, LVWolfman, and Gina Marie Wylie for advice and ideas. Lastly and most importantly, I want to thank all of the readers that gave me feedback, both good and bad. The only way a writer can improve is if he knows what he needs to get better on.