Destiny Unbonded

Chapter 15

To the Gods belong the future.

     - The Canon

[The Gods]

Only the Pantheon stood higher on Mt. Olympus than Zeus' mansion. Truly a king's residence, carved marble statues depicting the greatness of the Gods lined the terrace which overlooked the Moirai Chamber far below. The king of the Gods reclined on a clear glass chaise, his crystalline body glowing as he absorbed the Ambrosia that flowed from human worship.

Each day the Gods grew stronger. Soon they would have enough energy to mount an assault on the Ark and the Chaos that surrounded it, and be done with the threat once and for all. But the rate of Ambrosia had been disappointing. Many humans resisted the newly imposed penance, balking at the increased worship requirements.

"Let the creatures feel the wrath of the Gods again." Ares had suggested with his typical fervor. As usual, Demeter dissented, and Zeus had to break up another fight between them. Now was not the time for such wasteful squabbles.

Sensing a drain to the collective Ambrosia, Zeus bolted up and raced off the terrace, grabbing his golden staff on the way. Bursting into the great hall of the Pantheon, he shouted in thought-speech to the seven that stood there, "Who invoked the Gateway? We have not the Ambrosia to squander on such dalliance!"

Athena placed a hand to her forehead, then responded. "Something passed through the Gate into our realm, my King. Darkness obscures their identity, but it is no God."

"Then who?!" Zeus shouted.

The Goddess snapped her head up, sneering. "It could only be the Moirai traitor! A fool she is to return here."

"Fool or not, she has caused enough trouble. End her!" Zeus slammed down his staff, the bang echoing through the hall.

As Athena turned, multiple whorls of black smoke erupted into the hall from beyond the marble columns that supported the roof, twining around the Gods and attacking like the snake heads of the Hydra. Voices cried out in thought-speech and the Gods writhed in surprise and agony, swiping at the tendrils that struck them. The Chaos opened cracks in their crystalline bodies, from which leaked yellow-gold wisps of precious Ambrosia.

Enraged, Zeus slammed down his golden staff. Jagged blue-white bolts shot out from the tip, twisting through the Pantheon like lightning to dissolve the black tendrils into harmless wisps.

From the far end of the great hall, a woman sauntered in, carrying an obsidian knife at her waist and a longbow in hand. The Gods fell silent, parting to form a clear path for the woman to the King, but she stopped short.

Zeus bared crystalline teeth in contempt, and snarled in audible speech, "Who are you, human!"

"You should know me, oh almighty King of the Gods," the woman replied in a sarcastic tone. "It was you that cast me into the Cosmos."

"Nyx!" Zeus spat.

"In the flesh, so to speak." Nyx bowed, keeping her eyes trained on the God. "But that is not my true name, or Zeus yours." She straightened and patted her chest. "Nor are these our true forms, only a result of the collective human mind."

"How is it you live?"

"True, you and those of the Order dispersed my being across the abyss, but did you think I perished? It was only a matter of time before I returned whole again."

Before Zeus could respond, Nyx flung out her arms, launching spears of blackness. The Gods gasped and dodged, but they were not the targets. Each of the Seeing Mirrors at the Pantheon perimeter shattered in sequential crashes, spraying swirling shards across the hall.

A grin came to Nyx's face. "The time comes for men to be rid of false gods."

"And time comes for us to be truly rid of you!" Zeus growled, drawing his eyes down to narrow slits. Grasping tightly with both hands, he lowered his staff as sparks danced along the shaft.

But before Zeus could strike, Nyx drew an arrow from the quiver at her side. In a single flash of motion, she notched it to her bow and sent it flying. The obsidian point, laced with Chaos, struck Zeus in the chest. Threads of darkness burst from the arrowhead and spread within the God's crystalline body like cracks in glass. Roaring in thought-speech loud enough to make the other assembled Gods wince, Zeus came down to one knee, his staff clattering to the hard floor.

Athena jumped forward and let out a battle cry. Thrusting an open hand forward, a wide beam of golden light burst out, engulfing Nyx in its force. Nyx stumbled back, falling to her knees while panting for breath. Her human form phased into the black smoke of Chaos and back again to human.

Staggering to her feet, Nyx faced the narrow-eyed Goddess as if in a duel. The remaining Gods backed up into a loose circle, forming a makeshift arena. Hissing, Athena extended her hands outward, balls of bright churning light in each palm.

Nyx flashed a smirk. "Perhaps later." Lifting her arms, she flooded the hall with a swirling dark cloud. When the cloud dissipated, Nyx was gone.

Athena spun around, snarling. "Where is she?" The Gods glanced about the hall but could not answer. "Coward!" Athena roared to the mountainside. "Face me!"

Grimacing, Zeus rose to his feet and yanked out the arrow from his chest. "Nyx cannot hope to defeat us." He threw the arrow aside, causing it to skitter across the shiny floor. "Her appearance here was but a distraction." The remaining Gods stared silently at him. Zeus bared his crystal teeth and bellowed in thought-speech, "Find her!"