The Mouthpiece arrived at where the king was giving an audience, but didn't go in, merely waited outside. He could have simply walked right in; he was seen as on level with the king, nearly, due to his proximity to the gods. But he was content to wait.
"What makes you think you can say no to me?" The man growled, glaring daggers at Sam.
Sam glared back, looking the man up and down with disgust. "I don't know, and I don't particularly care either. I'm not giving you the Mouthpiece no matter what you do."
He waited quietly, the man's presence causing an itch in the back of his mind, as the gods fought and argued about what should be done. What could be done. Because yes, they could channel power through the Mouthpiece, but it usually rendered the Mouthpiece unable to be of any use for the rest of the day, as the strain of that much power flowing through a mortal body could cause him to throw up blood.
"Why not? I just want him for a day, I'll give you anything you want. Women, money, weapons, anything!" The man offered, looking a bit insane as he looked at Sam.
Sam shook his head, standing firm as he glared at him. "If you don't leave in five seconds, I'm calling the guards." He replied, making the man immediately shut up. "Five."
The Mouthpiece was quiet, head cocked slightly to one side. He ran a hand over his braid, feeling the gold strands pricking against his hand as he did so. He waited to see what would happen.
The man's glare softened as he tried to think what he should do.
"Four." Sam's voice rang throughout the room, his eyes jumping around the room as he wondered if the man was going to do anything or not.
"Three." The man murmured something that sounded like a sorry before jumping on Sam, hand covering his mouth and another plugging his nose.
Sam struggled around helplessly, passing out from the lack of air after a minute or two, his body falling limp.
The man chuckled afterwards, getting up and stretching his arms. "Should I just kill you…? Oh, but I can't let such a beautiful human just….die…."
The gods surged in the Mouthpiece's mind, babbling something that he couldn't quite make out. He opened the door to the room, eyes darting around as he saw the king on the ground with a man standing before him.
The man turned around when he heard the door open, his eyes lighting as he inspected the Mouthpiece. "Ah, yes, the Mouthpiece. I've been looking for you, you know." He smoothed his clothes as he walked over to the Mouthpiece, arms wide open for a hug.
The Mouthpiece frowned, green and gold eyes narrowed. "Who are you?" he said. He didn't allow the man to hug him, stepping to the side with his hands remaining by his sides. "And why have you been looking for me?"
"I need to ask the gods some rather….complicated questions…" The man answered, bowing in front of the Mouthpiece in an effort to be respectful to the gods, revealing a few of the marks on his arms.
The Mouthpiece cocked his head. "What have you done with the king?" He questioned, not bothering to address the man's words about the gods.
The man glanced at the king, making sure he wasn't waking up any time soon before looking at the Mouthpiece. "Nothing much." He smiled at the Mouthpiece, wanting to look friendly and not threatening. "And may I talk to the gods?"
The Mouthpiece drew himself up to his full height. "If you wished to speak to the gods, you should have gone through the proper channels, rather than assaulting the king inside of his own palace." He replied, voice icy as he stepped around the man and crouched beside the king.
The man chuckled. "You make it sound like I barged in here and attacked him." He sighed softly as he went over to the Mouthpiece. "Do you know how long I had to wait for this moment?" He asked, checking Sam's pulse, it was faint. "And don't worry about him, he's still alive."
The Mouthpiece narrowed his eyes. "I don't care how long you had to wait. You still should have gone through the proper channels." He examined the king for a moment, then looked at the man again.
"I also don't care." The man mumbled, glancing at the Mouthpiece. "Just let me talk to them, please!" He begged, looking at the Mouthpiece with a pleading look. "Just…please…"
The Mouthpiece sighed, examining the man for a long moment. "And what do you wish to speak to them about?" He asked. He gently picked Sam up, putting the king into a chair.
"About Thanatos and Keres," the man replied simply, hoping he would be able to get a chance to speak with them.
Sam had slowly regained consciousness, not moving at all and just listening to the conversation. He would need more than just 'he attacked me for no reason,' so he stayed quiet, not moving an inch.
The Mouthpiece frowned a little. "About what?" He pressed, crossing his arms and looking at the man steadily. There was no fear in his eyes, despite the fact that he was so small.
"Everyone thinks Hades, the god of the underworld, is the god of death, even though he's not. Thanatos and Keres just want some recognition." The man replied, saying Hades' name as if it was poison.
The Mouthpiece arched an eyebrow. "Sir. I know quite well who all the gods are and what they do. But you still haven't told me what you wish to speak with them about." He studied the man carefully, arms crossed.
The man chuckled, sighing softly. "Fine, fine. Thanatos and Keres want the wars to stop, or else we'll stop taking in the souls." He couldn't help the smirk that flickered into his face, his eyes slowly turning all black.
He arched an eyebrow at the man. "I am sorry. I do not understand what you are saying. If the gods, including Thanatos and Keres, had anything to say, they could of course communicate it to the other gods or to me, if their words are intended for mortal ears."
"These words aren't meant for mortal ears, but it has to be heard because they won't listen to neither Thanatos or Keres," The man said, looking rather mad. "And not taking in the souls can easily cause a problem, so you better listen to me."
"If they aren't meant for mortal ears, then why do you know them?" The Mouthpiece stayed calm, aware of the gods' presence pressing against the back of his mind as they listened to the conversation. He folded his hands together in front of him.