The thought of a god doing such a thing made Aphrodite feel sick. Yes, Ares would sacrifice thousands for a war; yes, she'd accidentally started a war with one love bolt, but -- being a god was a sacred trust, and the one time Zeus had thought about destroying mankind there had been strenuous objections.

"That sounds more like a monster than a god." Her voice was soft. "No one's perfect, even gods make mistakes, but -- to destroy a creation because it grew greater than you made it?" 'Dite shook her head. "That's obscene."