The Path to Victory

Chapter 13


Now the Olympians and their allies could only await the arrival of Cronos and the other titans. The tension was so great in the air that it was almost tangible, and no one spoke unless they had a question concerning the battle or a direct order to deal out. Zeus was basically the only one giving orders, so therefore his voice was heard most frequently.

Hades withdrew to his tent to put on his armor, and Poseidon, determined not to stray from his older brother’s side, offered to help him. Hades guessed that the other god felt guilty about not stopping Zeus in time, but unlike Poseidon seemed to believe, Hades did not hold a grudge against him because of this.

“Where is your sword?” Poseidon asked, eyeing the empty scabbard slung over his brother’s hip. “You must never stray from your sword. Even invisible, you have to be able to defend yourself.”

He located Hades’ sword and replaced it where it belonged, simultaneously checking that the scabbard was properly attached to Hades’ armour.

“I have done this before, brother,” the older god remarked, a trifle annoyed.

“I’m only looking after you.”

Hades smiled, removing his brother’s hand. “And I appreciate it… in small doses.”

Suddenly the earth trembled beneath their feet, and a roar from afar was carried through the air, signaling the advance of the Titans. In just a short while, battle would be upon them.

The three gods left their camp and walked to the battleground. They surveyed the vast field, the skies turning dark overhead with furious black clouds. Cronos was coming. The giants welcomed the coming of their enemy. Cyclopes roared in fervor and hecatonchires beat rocks together with their hundreds of hands. Zeus felt a strange energy within him he had not felt until his newfound allies had bestowed lightning upon him, and it coursed over his hands like fiery veins. He smiled and with little concentration produced a bolt of electric fire in his hand.

Poseidon gripped his trident tightly and Hades adorned himself with his helm. “How will we know where you are?” Poseidon muttered to his older brother.

“You won’t,” Hades’ disembodied voice replied. The sound of a sword coming unsheathed sounded next to the younger god. “And that means Zeus will not be bothered and you will not have to worry.”

Poseidon sighed in annoyance but otherwise said nothing.

Three Olympians, identical in armor, one invisible, joined the ranks of giants and waited for their enemy. They did not have to wait long. One cloud stretched downward like an immense black arm, hitting the ground and dissipating to reveal Cronos himself, colossal and deadly.

Their father wielded a sickle, the same one he had used to castrate and overthrow his own father, Uranus. The immense Titan quickly spotted two of his children, and Poseidon narrowly avoided a strike from the sickle, which would have cloven him in two had he been only a little slower.

Zeus immediately countered the attack, striking his father in the head several times with bolts of lightning. The blows only accomplished to further anger the Titan king, and this time Zeus had made himself a target. A blow by one of Cronos’ allies felled him to the ground, and had not one of the Cyclopes distracted Cronos by hurling a massive boulder at him, the leader of the Olympians would have been stomped into the ground by his father.

*

Despite vicious and fearless fighting by their allies, the Olympians were losing the battle. One of the Cyclopes had been slain, and out of the hecatonchires’ one hundred hands, less than half were still in place. Zeus realized that if they wanted to have any chance of victory, it was time to introduce the Kraken.

The hours of strife seemed to have flown by in minutes, but the position of the sun, barely peeking through the dark clouds, did not lie. Afternoon was becoming evening, and now that the battle had been initiated, Cronos would not simply end it because of a setting sun.

“FALL BACK,” Zeus shouted, and the army descended the fields and into the shore. Zeus was able to catch the look of triumph in his father’s eyes, for Cronos seemed to know his rebellious children were trapped with no way out of the skirmish.

Poseidon looked to the left of him and saw the hecatonchires, still hurling boulders and crushing many enemies, swarmed by creatures springing forth from the waters. Its fifty heads howled as the sea beasts began to devour it alive like ants on an infant bird. If Cronos had soldiers under the sea’s depths, did this mean the Kraken was already defeated? A small part of Poseidon felt a twinge of panic at the thought, the sort of panic felt by a father over his child.

In his moment of concern, Poseidon did not detect a creature coming toward him with club raised. Before he could even react, the adversary’s chest split open, as though cleaved by… an invisible weapon.

“Now, my child! Now!” a familiar disembodied voice cried.

“Hades… you saved me.” Poseidon instinctively reached out toward his brother’s voice in hope of touching the invisible god in reassurance. The heat of the battle had not allowed them much communication, and up until now Poseidon had not even known for sure that his brother still lived.

Before he could touch Hades, he heard the other’s voice again. Still calling out to the Kraken, it was suddenly transformed into a strangled cry of pain and terror. Spinning on his heel, Poseidon could spot his father lifting something off the ground in his massive, scarred fist, and based on the location of the cry added to the fact that Cronos’ hand appeared empty, there was little doubt as to what was happening. Hades’ invisibility could no longer protect him.

“HADES! Brother, no!”

Without thoughts of his own safety or existence, Poseidon charged and buried the prongs of his trident deep in Cronos’ partially exposed thigh. A cry of pain and rage sounded from the Titan king, but he did not release his hold on his oldest son. Poseidon repeated his action several times, completely oblivious to the fact that he was being doused in his father’s blood, until he was grabbed from behind and bodily dragged away. Expecting one of Cronos’ minions, the god struggled fiercely until a familiar voice revealed itself.

“Stand down, brother, lest he slay you! I will deal with him myself,” Zeus said, and the following moment a white hot bolt of electricity hit Cronos, cracking and curling around his entire form like a whip made of light. The titan king cried out, but it was not the sound of one cry, but two that reached the gods’ ears.

“Zeus, you idiot!” Poseidon howled at his brother. “He has Hades, and you might very well have killed him now!”

Cronos’ glowing red eyes flashed beneath his helmet, and he threw Hades’ still invisible body away, convinced that his eldest son was now dead. The god ended his arc of descent against some rocks, which subsequently knocked the helm of invisibility off his head, causing him to flicker back to visibility.

Several foes stood between Poseidon and Hades, brandishing weapons but on their last inches of life. Poseidon easily knocked the weak aside and skewered the still fighting as he made his way to his fallen brother.

“Hades!” he cried as he fell to his knees, taking his older brother in his arms. He gently cradled his fellow god’s head and whispered his name. Hades was still breathing, but he was unconscious.

“Please, Hades…” Poseidon begged. He exhaled his relief when Hades’ eyes opened and looked at him.

“He is coming. Cronos should have stayed away…” the elder god remarked with a weak smile of accomplishment.

The sounds of retreat filled the air as various creatures bellowed out their cries of fear and stumbled backwards out of the shoreline. Poseidon looked up and to his amazement, the
Kraken burst from the ocean depths, towering over all and roaring in a pure unrelenting rage that must have intimidated even the mighty Cronos.

Hades felt a pain in his chest that obstructed his breathing, and when he coughed, blood bubbled from his mouth. His armor had done well in protecting him until now, but it was no match for the colossal strength of Cronos, who had done his best to squeeze the life out of Hades. His left arm, the one he had landed on, felt completely numb and useless, most likely broken.

“M-my… child… will…”

Poseidon stroked the messy, bloodied hair from Hades’ forehead. His brother appeared to have hit his head as well, and was bleeding from a wound in his scalp. “Don’t speak, brother,” he softly urged. “You have done your part in this battle. Let your child do the rest.”

As though wanting to prove Poseidon’s words, the Kraken roared again and one of its giant tentacles swept over the shore, gathering a hoard of enemies that had been too slow to retreat. Only a few seconds later, the badly mutilated remains of the unfortunate creatures fell through the air like rain. Another tentacle brushed close to where Hades and his brother lay, and sensing the dire condition of its parent, the Kraken gave another cry, this time out of both fury and pain.

Cronos’ sense of fear was pushed aside quickly, though he was still quite intimidated by the gigantic beast. It was far bigger than him, but he was a Titan, and he was confident that he would utterly annihilate this creation just as he had with all the others his children had thrown at him. He roared back and advanced.

Zeus watched as the Kraken collided with Cronos, and for a brief moment he thought that the Titan might just win, based on his father’s tenacity alone. He considered bringing forth his lightning to assist until the Kraken overcame his foe. The creature had never fought an enemy closer to its size before, and not one who had fought back, but the Kraken was a fast learner and used its overpowering limbs. Blood was spilt with Cronos’ sickle, but his voracity was not enough to save him.

In a strange twist of irony, the Titan found himself encircled by tentacles and soon he was being crushed. The sensation was excruciating and he felt like the measly prey of some dominant predator. The sound of bones breaking echoed in the air. In his agony Cronos could barely look up into the rows of jagged, dripping teeth before they closed on him, devouring the Titan’s head first.

The now headless body of the Titan king twitched a few times in the Kraken’s hold, as if it had not yet caught up on what was happening and tried to defy death. In response to this, the massive sea beast tore the still spasming limbs one by one from the torso they were attached to, and this finally seemed to satisfy the Kraken.

Cronos, the ruler of the sky, had been defeated.

Zeus could only stare in awe at the blatant display of power. He had dreamt of this moment ever since he learned of his father’s misdeeds, and seeing Cronos’ battered remains sink into the ocean filled him with a sense of long-awaited triumph. Clearly Hades had not been mistaken.

The surviving Titans quickly surrendered after their leader had been slain, and their battle cries were replaced by pleas of mercy. Zeus was not yet sure how much of that he was going to bestow upon them.

After the Titans had been rounded up and restrained with ropes and knots, Zeus went to search for his brothers. He had not seen either Poseidon or Hades since the direct confrontation with their father, and he feared what he might find. Zeus located the two older Olympians by a set of rocks. Poseidon was predictably holding a very still Hades in his arms, and judging from the look of Hades’ crushed armour, Zeus could only presume that their oldest brother had been slain.

“We have victory,” the Olympian leader informed his surviving brother, kneeling beside him and placing a hand on his shoulder. Both Poseidon’s trident and Hades’ helm of invisibility lay on the ground next to them.

“To what cost?” Poseidon softly said, his voice strangely quiet. He did not turn to look at his leader, as the tears on his face would have shown weakness, and he would not show weakness to Zeus.

“Our brother may be dead,” he continued. “He nearly died once already for our victory. If not for my efforts, he would not even be here to control the Kraken… and now look at him.”

Zeus stared down at the sight before him, at the way one brother gently cradled the other, whispering comforting words which possibly could not be heard. “Of what efforts do you speak?” he asked.

Poseidon finally looked up at his brother, and his eyes were red and threatening more tears. “I cannot say… I… willed him back…”

The look in Poseidon’s eyes was something Zeus had never seen before. His brother could be both cruel and empathetic, but he had never seen the older god weep. The youngest Olympian then looked at Hades’ still expression. If he was not dead already, the eldest brother would be soon. Zeus tried to speak, but at first the words escaped him.

“May I try?” he asked. “Perhaps it will help.”

Poseidon was touched by the offer to help, but the grief-stricken expression did not disappear from his face. “Try what? To heal him? I… I already tried,” he admitted. “It was to no avail. I couldn’t help him this time. His wounds are too grave.”

Zeus frowned, studying his surviving brother intently. Apart from the fact that he was still drenched in Cronos’ now drying blood, Poseidon looked absolutely exhausted. He had fought hard in this battle, and any attempt to heal his brother’s wounds must have really taken a toll on him.

“Allow me to try,” Zeus said. If Hades died now, the youngest Olympian would not get a chance to apologize for what he had done to his brother only hours before the battle. It had seemed like the good idea at the time, and he had not given Hades’ thoughts or feelings much if any consideration.

Poseidon tried to move aside a little to allow Zeus enough room to work on their brother, but he did not want to move Hades, lest they aggravate his injuries. Zeus placed both hands on his brother’s chest, right over the cracked armour, but he soon realized that it would not work unless he touched Hades’ bare skin.

“Help me remove his armour,” the young god commanded, drawing a confused glance from Poseidon.

“Zeus, what would—”

“There will be a time for questions later. I have to get as close to his heart as possible.”

Poseidon held back a quiver in his chin and complied, careful in removing his brother’s armor despite Hades’ unconscious state. He was desperate to harden his heart as the armor came away and revealed the true extent of his older brother’s injuries.

Ugly dark bruises decorated the once beautiful pale skin of the fallen god, some of which so harsh that the skin was broken in tiny abrasions. The bruising was at its worst in the places where bones had been broken, such as in Hades’ arm and ribs. One rib was broken from the skin and protruding from his side.

Even Zeus had to close his eyes to the state of his eldest brother. Hands touching the other god’s chest with the utmost gentility, he knelt over the lifeless form and leaned within inches to the still face.

“I won’t let you die, brother,” he whispered. Concentrating, Zeus thought of Hades’ injuries and focused his power. He felt a warmth rise in his chest and flow out through his arms and into his eldest brother’s body.

Live, Hades… heal and live.

A warm, white light radiated from Zeus’ hands and into Hades’ body, making the pale, bruised skin of his chest seem almost luminescent. Poseidon, who was still supporting his sibling’s head, held his breath in suspense. Was Zeus truly able to accomplish what he could not?

After what seemed like an eternity, the light itself died out, and the Olympian leader slowly withdrew his hands. “I have done what I could, Poseidon,” he said gravely. “Now all we can do is wait…”

Poseidon fixed his gaze on Hades’ visage, desperately searching for signs of life. None were present, and he started dreading that their efforts had all been in vain. “I promised I would protect him…” the hapless god murmured.

Zeus’ hand descended heavily upon his older brother’s shoulder. “At least we tried, Poseidon,” he said compassionately. “We did everything we could. He was simply too weak.”

Though his heart would not accept it, Poseidon nodded, reason telling him that his younger brother was right. This was a war, and casualties were a part of it. Just as he was about to set Hades down and accept what had happened, the fallen Olympian’s eyes snapped open, followed by a sharp intake of breath.

Both of Hades’ brothers looked on in shock as he gasped for air, coughing and choking on blood which had been so freely seeping moments before. Scrambling onto his side, the elder god hacked out the congealed substance and remained on his side, clearing his throat and lungs.

“Hades?”

Recognizing Poseidon’s voice, Hades turned back towards his brothers, trying to slow his breathing. There was recognition in his face and yet he winced when they came near.

“Brother, it is alright,” Poseidon said, taking Hades by the shoulders. “You are safe… we are all safe. The Kraken has killed our father.”

Glancing back and forth between his two brothers, Hades finally managed to calm himself, though his heart still pounded in his chest. At least that pounding was proof he indeed was alive.

“I thought I was still…” he muttered, grasping at his chest. He reached further and came to realize he was no longer hurt, the ribs back in place. His arm worked perfectly fine as he moved it, no longer broken.

“What do you mean, Hades?” Zeus asked, just as confused as Poseidon over their brother’s behavior.

“I was dead. Only for a moment… but I was elsewhere. I think… I was in the Underworld.”

“In the Underworld?” Poseidon repeated, eyes wide open. “Do you really believe so?” If Hades was right, it had to mean that his spirit had already separated from his body when Zeus’ healing powers took effect, and that was an eerie thought.

“I know what I saw, brother,” Hades replied gravely. He looked down at himself, naked except for a thin linen shirt which was also torn in most places, and contemplated the sudden lack of serious injuries. Bits of his mangled armor lay on the ground beside him, and his chest was still sore, but the suffocating feeling of something heavy resting on his chest was gone.

“What happened to me? Why was I brought back?” he asked, moving his gaze between his two brothers as he struggled to sit up. Poseidon’s hand was immediately on his back, steadying him.

“Take it easy, Hades…” the younger god warned, still not daring to trust the other’s miraculous healing.

Hades turned to Zeus, grasping his forearm. “Tell me,” he implored.

The look on Zeus’ face was severe with a tinge of regret. “Cronos had killed you. He crushed you in his hand.” Zeus of course left out the detail of his brother being electrocuted. The last thing he needed to do was reveal he had a part on Hades’ suffering before he had faded into the realm of death.

“He threw you to the rocks after that,” Poseidon added. “I think your fall might have brought out anger in the Kraken that encouraged him to kill our father.”

As if it knew the gods were speaking of it, the Kraken wandered nearby, looking down at the tiny specks which were its predecessors. As though satisfied that Hades was alive, the massive beast returned to the shores, scooping fallen enemies into its gigantic jaws and supping upon dead flesh.

“My wounds…” Hades mused aloud. “They have been healed?”

“By me,” Zeus answered. “I stepped in when Poseidon could not heal you. You have both of us to thank.”

Hades nodded, but only looked at Poseidon as he said thank you. Zeus huffed but did not speak his annoyance.

“What of the other Titans?” the eldest god inquired. “Are they dead?”

“They live… for now.” Zeus gazed out in the direction of where their foes lay restrained. “Part of me wants to do away with the entire generation. But not all of them agreed with the ways of our father. Arrangements will have to be made.”

Hades wanted to ask what kind of arrangements his brother was talking about, but at the moment he was too distracted by his own condition to bother. Thankfully his gift from the Cyclopes had survived the attack unscathed, and Hades took the helm in his hands, guessing that it had indeed saved his life many times over.

“We should get you back to the encampment,” Poseidon said to his brother. “Do you… think you can stand?”

“I’ll try,” Hades replied, and though his legs were shaky, he managed quite well. Having Poseidon to lean on helped, and with Zeus leading the way, the three Olympian brothers began walking toward the restrained Titans. Stripped of their armor and weapons, they did not look quite as massive or menacing anymore, and the two surviving Cyclopes had no problems keeping them in line.

“I’ll remain here to oversee things,” Zeus informed his two brothers. “Poseidon, as soon as you have escorted Hades to the camp, I want you to rejoin me here. I would rather not make decisions of this magnitude all by myself."

At this point, Hades was not surprised to be excluded, but he was still angry all the same. “And the reason for not requiring my presence?”

“You are weak…” Zeus replied, and Poseidon’s arm around Hades’ form tightened for a moment. Zeus of course realized the subtlety of his statement and recovered it. “…from your injuries. You were dead by the time we were finally able to heal you. You should retire to your tent for the time being. Rest and regain your strength.”

“I see,” Hades replied, his eyes fixed in an icy glare. “Then I shall retire, regain my strength…”

“Hades.”

Poseidon and his brother stopped as they began to depart, looking back at Zeus. The younger god had a strange look in his eyes that neither Poseidon nor Hades saw very often.

“Brother… I wish to apologize. About…” he hesitated and sighed. “It was wrong. I had hurt you without thought. I am sorry for taking you against your will.”

The three gods stood in silence as they considered the gravity of what Zeus had said. The youngest Olympian hardly ever took the time to apologize for anything he did. In his mind, nothing he did required doubt or regret.

“I hope that you would forgive me.”

Hades looked into his brother’s eyes. They were beautiful when their owner wore the mask of guilt. “Thank you,” he finally said.

Zeus watched as his two brothers departed from the shore, Poseidon with a protective arm around Hades’ shoulders. He was indeed starting to suspect that the two would ask to become officially mated, and for reasons the young god could not explain, the idea infuriated him.

Zeus kept a stern, watchful eye on his prisoners of war until Poseidon returned, alone. His older brother was still mostly covered in congealed blood and he looked weary beyond words, but he kept his head high and brandishing his trident, he certainly looked intimidating enough.

“How is Hades?” Zeus asked dutifully when he was rejoined by the other.

“Our brother sleeps,” Poseidon replied.

Zeus nodded curtly and saw it fit to begin his speech, addressing the defeated Titans. “Your leader, Cronos, has been slain. Whatever loyalty you may have felt to my father exists no more, and you need not feel bound to it. Those of you who are willing to submit to me and accept me as your ruler, I will show lenience to. If you cannot accept me in my father’s stead, I will have no choice but to have you imprisoned for all eternity.”

“And what would become of us as prisoners?” one Titan asked. “What if we defy your rule?”

“Your incarceration would be in Tartarus, where you kept your creations the giants,” Zeus said with a glare. The two Cyclopes raised clenched fists. Clearly the brutes approved of the punishment.

“And if you defy the sentence, I’m sure we can arrange you to join your brother.”

Though the Kraken was nowhere to be seen, likely back in the seas, the Titans warily looked around for the creature nonetheless.

“Otherwise,” Zeus announced, bringing the attention back to him. “We can come to a certain agreement. We do not have to live together with hatred between us. I shall rule the sky in my father’s stead, but you shall not be fully cast aside.”

“If you are to rule the sky,” a Titan by the name of Hyperion spoke up miserably. “Who will be the sun? The moon? And what of the world-ocean?”

“Celestial forms will remain, my friends,” Zeus answered. “You may decide between you which realms you shall inhabit and incorporate.”

Affirmative murmurs sounded from some of the Titans, while others gave loud objections. Powerful deities as they were, they simply could not bear the thought of giving up their power and submit to Cronos’ rebellious son.

“This is my one and only offer of pardon,” Zeus said, sweeping his piercing gaze over the prisoners. “If you do not want it, you shall know what awaits you in Tartarus.”

“You self-righteous little rat!” one of the Titans named Atlas roared out, and with a feat of strength, he was able to sever his bonds and charge at the Olympian leader. Before Atlas could reach his target, however, a spiked club swung by one of the Cyclopes hit him across the head, promptly bringing him down. Seconds later, lightning coiled around the unfortunate Titan like hundreds of snakes, glowing bright enough to light up the entire night sky.

Furious that a prisoner of war had dared to attack him, Zeus turned to the other captives, ready to give anyone who dared to oppose him the same treatment. Sparks of lightning even shot out from the furious god’s eyes.

“Would anyone else like to be heard…?” he inquired, his voice low and dangerous.

Poseidon, ever the one to display his own powers of persuasion, stepped forward and stood beside his brother. He dipped the forked end of his trident and ever so lightly tapped the ground. The ground trembled threateningly beneath the group.

“He is letting us live,” a Titaness said, although her voice was weakened by fear. “All that has changed is our leader. We should accept his offer.”

Zeus smiled at the female Titan, a beautiful thing really. “Please accept,” he said. “Unlike my father… I shall be fair.”


TBC...