Hephaestus

“Bébé, I have found the perfect pet for you.” The Goddess Mother of all said to her own natural child. “Are we to be French today mère?” The child, who now was a God now in his own right teased back.

“You know my weakness for the French. I married your father after all.” She replied back with a side-long glance at her handsome son. He had her dark hair and eyes. But apart from that her son was all his father. 

She shook away thoughts about her husband and came back to the topic at hand, well aware how her child had been awaiting this moment. “Anyways, I named him Leora.”

“Rhymes with your own familiar Ma.”

“Yes. But he’ll be far more fiercer than my Maura. Leora is the feline equivalent to biggest guard dog after all.”

*****************

I looked on in amusement as Athena made her so called 'wise' predictions. I would so enjoy the look on her face, when the day came for her to realize and accept, how naive and blind she truly was.

A test, me? I thought while shutting off our view of Zeus’s throne room. I was not a bloody educator, here to teach these young arrogant olympians the way of life. And Athena? She was set to feel the repercussions, more than most. All because of who her parents were. All because of Zeus’s favour and love for her.

The Goddess of Wisdom? Hah, what a croak of shit! Perhaps, she may have been wise in her younger years. At least as wise as someone like her could be. But she was too arrogant now. And where there was ego, wisdom tended to slip away like water through your fingers.

“It is almost time.” The Queen said from the chair, I had made just for her. She looked so good, pretending to be my mother, almost identical to my Hera.  “Don’t you want to relax a bit more, mother dearest?” I asked while smirking at her. To know that, I had finally succeeded in getting one over the being in front of me? It was euphoric. 

“Azar, if you are done now with your jokes, it would be sensible to get moving.” Ah how annoying, that even with a different face, this individual still managed to affect the same aloofness as ever.

“Actually, I think it might be a good idea to make an example of the Queen’s weakness. It will buy us some time. And it will also soften Zeus towards you. The "bastard" of his wife.” Cal chuckled from the other chair, in the Queen's personal chambers.

I could understand his humour. Zeus feeling beholden to his wife's bastard? It had a certain point of hilarity to it. But it would have been more comical if it weren't so hypocritical. How many children did Zeus himself have outside of his marriage? 

“That was the plan mate. Only if the Queen would agree.” I replied back, feeling annoyance at her refusal to go with my suggestion. “Azar, as much as Zeus hates Hera, he does not tolerate anyone else harming his wife. Publicly humiliating his Queen would be the same thing as making the King your enemy.”

“He is no King of mine.” I hissed back, irritated just at the notion of having to pander to that slave of garishness. "And if you just..." But he, I mean she had to cut me off before I could explain. 

“As true as that might be, he is King to his people. And all of the Olympians are his followers. Most importantly, you need to lay low, at least until we can figure out how to break your curse. Because that curse has substantially weakened you son.”

As much as I appreciated logic, I hated it when it came from the direction that it did. I know that a lot of our situation was my fault, but th person pretending to be Olympus's Queen was not without fault either. The great-

No, no these were dangerous thoughts. I could not think them, not even in the presence of those who were family. Not until, I could understand the strengths and weaknesses of my own mental faculties. Not until I knew if I still had the ability to keep my thoughts locked away from everyone.

“So how do you suggest we do this, your highness?” As predicted, she made a face at that moniker. She had never had a patience for uppity titles.

“Majority vote on the Queen’s humiliation idea. Remember we are trying to become a democratic government in here.” Cal added, loosing his own patience with the back and forth between her and I. “And anyways Zeus is not going to be a problem for some time. He’s in love.”

“Again?” Came the Queen’s exasperated voice.“You’re the one encouraging him in that direction, aunty.” Cal replied back sarcastically, before turning to me. “Plus, I would pay more attention to Savas. I hate to say this Azar, but he is going to be a huge problem.”

My brother? The boy whom I had more or less raised? The one who had always proudly walked in our mother’s path?

Unbelievable.

“Azar, son, listen to me.” I looked at her, as my eyes stared into dark blue eyes. Just like my own. “Your brother is no longer in possession of his soul. He has lost his way, and in turn he has even corrupted your sisters. At least the younger one.” She sighed before continuing, "Eris you know always has danced to her own tune."

“You can’t mean to tell me even Hebe-“ I was cut off as she raised her hand up to stop me.“You only paid attention to Zeus’s children. Too trusting in your mother’s. But those that still care for you, we have witnessed your siblings’ depravity”

“Have they forgotten?” I asked with some hope. Perhaps, the loss of their past could explain the change. “No.” Came her stony response. 

“I didn’t know that.” Cal remarked in surprise. “I honestly thought they had forgotten." He gave me an incredulous look before continuing. "This is far more worse. I had started believing that perhaps I had been too hasty in my prejudices.”

“They do retain their memories to an extent. But I have made sure they cannot speak of it. Not until the rightful ruler of heaven is once again reinstated.” She stated as she looked directly at me. Yeah, I knew what my duties were. Either Hera would rule the heavens again, or in case of her death it would be her child. Though, I still refused to accept the latter option. Still in the meantime, I would restore heavens to its former glory. 

“A few more years till it’s completed.” I replied looking at Cal to see if he realized what exactly I had been up to in my long absence. “You’ve been building.” He stated. I inclined my head, but chose not to comment further on the matter of my true home.

“How bad is it with them? And if they retain their memories, why are they acting the way that they are?” I asked, coming back to the matter of my siblings. “Because in their eyes we lost. We are weak to them. And more over, they think that we have abandoned them. So they chose a side where they think the grass is greener.” She answered, yet again in that callous way of hers. Yet somewhere in her cold heart it had to bother her somewhere. If they were my siblings, they had been her children. 

“But still that can’t mean-" I tried to argue, but she cut me off. 

“Azar, never forget. You are Hera’s only child.” The indication was not lost on me. “So blood is truly thicker than love?” The cynicism in my voice was obvious. How could they simply ignore everything that we had done for them.

The family they had been a part for over two-

“It would be more appropriate to say that your father’s blood in you is quite strong. At one point he was the most strongest god in the universe. Shame your uncle has succeeded him in that, your highness.” She smirked at me while throwing that title right back in my face.

And I could not even refute it. Because no matter how much I hated my father right now, I knew what was embedded in my father’s blood. Or rather, who.

My mother would always remain in his soul and body. My father had never been as vocal as her about their love. But to all that knew him, knew that he was just as obsessed with her. I was the result of their mutual obsession after all.

“Azar as I have said time and again. The family has only ever consisted of our parents, the four of us, and our fated ones. You should never have hoped that outsiders could ever belong with us.” I looked at the master of poisons, and I could easily read on his face, what he had chosen not to say. The warning he had spouted countless times to all of us. 

Calixtus, the cynic as always. 

Aunt is too soft and good Azar. It will eventually prove to be her downfall. And thus, our destruction. But she listens to you and her Primordial. Try to convince her that it’s not good, not good at all, to be so good.

Cal had been the only one who had warned us continuously. To not bring outsiders into our fold. To keep the danger of strangers at the forefront of our mind. It was truly unfortunate, how true his paranoia had proven to be. “How bad is it really?” I asked, posing the question to both the occupants in the room.

“They have already done their worse, Azar. But we do not have the time to discuss this anymore. Zeus is finally demanding our presence.”

“We go just as you are, or we stay.” I said, I had made up mind before I had even stepped a foot into Olympus. The Queen truly should have known better than to argue with me.

She simply sighed, before shaking her head in defeat.

“Wait a minute, Azar.” Cal stopped us before we could leave. “Savas will be a difficult hurdle. But do not forget, that he is not our target. Don’t let him distract you from the reason of your return."

“I won’t.” I promised, nothing and no one could stray me from the path I had to walk on. But I could understand why Dionysus worried.

I had cared for my little brother, after all. But what no one knew, was that, that affection had not come naturally to me. I had only cared for them, because my mother had. And I knew how to kill my own emotions in order to gain my objectives. And if I had to sacrifice Savas and our, his, sisters for it, then so be it.

I had only shown them kindness, and now they would see the true cost of throwing that kindness back in someone's face. Kindness after all was far more manipulative. As kindness at times could be extremely cruel. A delicious contradiction in its own right.

I had extended that very kindness to Savas, no he was Ares now. And I also knew, how to take it back. I nodded at Cal, and agreed to his condition. Because that was exactly what it was. 

“I’ll trust you to keep your head then.” He nodded at me, before we materialized in front of the so called King.

“Well, well, my Queen, it seems that you still have not been able to break out of your son’s most fine creation.” The thunder boy's voice boomed out as the Queen and I stood in front of him. The Queen did a most excellent job of glaring right back at him.

Most fine creation? How insulting. He hadn’t seen the best of my creations. And he never would. As if I would ever waste my talents on these undersiving boors.

As Zeus turned his grey gaze to me, I barely held in the urge to throw a few of my fire hammers into his smug face. The boy seriously needed a makeover. Especially with that beard and hair.

This, this was what fates thought they could replace my father with? Our Hera did like men with fairer hair, but Zeus seriously was not it.

“Hephaestus is it? So tell me child what is it that wish to gain from me?”

You’re body parts to feed my cat? Yes that seemed just about right. Leora would pleased. But then again she might be able to digest something so disgusting. 

“I wish to live in Olympus.” I lied instead. 

No I did not want to live in Olympus. It was a different story that I had to.