“I didn’t know. I thought it might. And you were all so young. And we wanted you to be your best selves. I didn’t know what that would be. It wasn’t until you said you wanted to come on this voyage that any of you said you wanted to be heroes.”

“So we could do the kind of thing gods do? Like transforming people into things?” Phaedrus said, pensively.

“Yes, but it’s not usually a good idea,” Father said. I saw an expression on his face that I hadn’t seen since before Mother died. He was worried. “You have power. You might be able to do that. But please don’t!”

“How do we use it?” Kallikles asked.

Father’s brow furrowed a little. “You just reach out and use it. You’ll work it out. You’ve all learned logic and self-control.”

“Not like the gods,” Phaedrus said, and laughed.

“How about time travel?” I asked.

“Don’t try that!” He looked really worried now. “That does take experience. It isn’t time travel. You step outside time and then back in. Being outside time isn’t like being in it. Look, please don’t try that until after I have my own powers and I can show you how to do it. Terrible things could happen to you. You could get lost forever.” He laughed suddenly. “This reminds me of when the boys were all starting to walk at once! Suddenly nothing was safe, and we had no idea what you could get into or do. Simmea—am I ever going to stop missing Simmea?”

“Ever is a long time for a god,” I said. “Can we use this power to keep from dying?”

“Your body will have to die, eventually. But you can keep it healthy meanwhile. And you don’t have to stay dead, if you choose to be a god.”

It was such a scary thought. “You’ll help us?” Phaedrus asked.

“What, I have to run entry-level divinity classes now? Of course I will.” He hesitated. “You’re heroes. In some ways, you have more ability to use your powers than I do mine, even when I have mine. Gods are bound by Fate and Necessity, of course, but we’re also under the edicts of Zeus—we can’t use our powers to interfere in human affairs unless we’re asked. You can keep right on interfering as much as you want because you’re still mortal for the time being.”

“What?” Phaedrus sounded affronted. “What about what Athene did setting up the Republic? Wasn’t that interfering in human affairs?”

“The Masters prayed to her for help doing it,” Father said. “She could grant their prayers. She couldn’t have done it alone.”

“And buying the Children?” I asked.

“The Masters decided to do it. She just chose to help. It was all human action and the consequences of human action.” He looked helpless.