fading suns

δύο

The God stood with a defiant glimmer in his warm hazel eyes. He knew Zeus's wrath would eat his insides and burn them, but he wanted to go down with grace. His golden curls and sun kissed skin shone brighter than everyone at Olympus. He loved how everyone's eyes used to be fixated on him with mesmerized stares. He loved being noticed, but it has hard to shine and glow when the God of the Sky forced the thick gray clouds to envelope the dazzling sun with their cracking thunder and monstrosity.

The throne room had twelve obsidian and rose gold thrones, each intricately carved with designs and carvings unique to each God's powers. His own throne had topaz suns and gold lyres etched upon them. He could feel the bubbling rage emanating from Zeus, his wrath of glowing lightning and torrential rain terrorizing the azure sky.

"Come closer to me boy," Zeus growled lowly. The rage in his voice was clearly demarcated, his mighty bellows causing the entire marble floor to shake. Apollo made his way to the center throne carved with celestial bronze lightning bolts.

"You dare defy me, you powerless being!" he bellowed as he raised his searing lightning bolt and threw it straight at him. The bolt struck him square in the chest, the impact knocking him down and throwing his body several feet away from his original position. He lay flat on the ground, his back pressed against the cool marble floor. His chest constricted and burned with the sizzle of electricity. Unfazed by the cackling of electricity in his chest and the stabbing pain in his heart, he got up; brushing the non existent speckles of dust off his ivory satin robes. He looked over to his sister, Artemis. Her jaw was clenched and her knuckles were stark white. To anyone she would have looked calm and composed like she always was, but her eyes betrayed her. They were burning with fury and resentment. He gave his sister a golden smile of reassurance which was returned by a sharp nod.

Poseidon looked at him with silent disappointment, unable to wrap his head around how could he repeat the same mistake twice. Apollo knew challenging Zeus's power was a death wish, but he hardly had anything to do at Olympus and challenging Zeus seemed like the best way to snake his way out of boredom. That's what he had told all of them, so that his punishment would be condensed to something less gruesome and cruel. In reality, he wanted to get rid of Zeus and his tyrannical ways. He hated that because of him his mother had to suffer and bear Hera's iron wrath. He hated how because of him, countless woman had to bear the undeserved vexations of the heartless Hera. He hated how he had created a mist of fear in everyone's mind to have power over them. He hated him so much, that he went to ask help from the one person who he should have always avoided at all costs. He silently hoped that no one caught wind of his meeting with the unspeakable lord.

"Look at me," he growled, causing the hair on the back of his neck to stand up. Apollo forced himself to look into his gray eyes rolling with rumbling storm clouds. His nectar smeared lips twitched with uncontrollable rage. "You repeated the same mistake once again, Phoebus Apollo. When will your insolence ever go?"

Apollo almost said his insolence would go the day he died but he bit on his tongue harshly. He could taste the golden ichor on his tongue, as he clenched his jaw and balled his hands into fists.

"As your punishment, you shall be exiled to Earth for a year. It goes without saying you shall be stripped off all divine powers. You will be sent to Crete as a famed musician to work for King Minos under the name Lakis."

Apollo silently nodded knowing he had no choice but to go back to Earth once again. He had heard a lot about the cruelty of the King of Crete and the Minotaur he proudly claimed as his.

"One more thing Apollo, no harm should come to my son. If you harm him, your punishment would be worsened," he threatened. Apollo knew Zeus was not the kind to make empty threats. His gaze darted to Hera, who was digging her nails into the obsidian throne. Her nostrils flared with anger when Zeus spoke of his bastard child with the moral. Apollo wondered why did she not leave him, she was the ever loyal wife and he had always been the husband with wandering hands. But perhaps they really were a match made in heaven, tyranny ran in their blood. They both were just as monstrous as the other.

Apollo stepped forward towards Zeus's throne, his eyes defiantly locked with his. Zeus raised his rough hands and slowly withdrawed all his powers. He hated that part, it felt like someone was draining him, emptying him till he was completely hollow inside. His insides twisted and turned, his skin burnt and shivered as Zeus stripped him of his godhood. All the life inside of him felt like it was being sucked out of him with a vacuum. Once he was devoid of all godly powers, he felt like an empty bone china vase that could break with the slightest of movement.

His sister's jaw was ticking with self restraint. He knew she wanted run to him and comfort him, but she couldn't. No one was free to love in Olympus, love was something they were incapable of. They were only capable of destruction and cataclysms.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───