Written In the Stars

Chapter 1

High in the heavens sat a palace perched atop a wondrous Mount Orthrys where the city of Orthrys was located. The palace was milky white marble with golden pillars that supported the arches. The roof was ruby red with a dome in the middle. Various other palaces were adorned through the mountain, but they were no were near as grand as the palace in the middle of it all. Even amidst the beauty of the city, the air sat cold and malicious. A shiver that could be seen among the citizens of the city.

In the grandest of the palaces, sat a man atop a throne as black as the night sky. His face regal in its beauty, yet his golden eyes sang with cruelty and malice. To either side, sat eleven other majestic thrones that were not as grand and opulent as the one at the head. In these thrones, sat the twelve children of Gaea, the Earth, and Ouranos, the Sky: Kronos of time, Rhea of fertility and the generations, Tethys of fresh water, Hyperion of heavenly light, Iapetus of mortality, Koios of intellect, Krios of the constellations, Themis of divine law, Oceanus of the vast oceans, Phoebe the inquirer, Theia of sight and the shining light of the clear blue sky, and Mnemosyne of memory and remembrance.

It had been almost a decade since Zeus freed his siblings from their father's stomach. The Titans were outraged when Zeus, disguised as a cupbearer during one of the titan's council meetings, fed Kronos a concoction of vinegar and mustard. Such a disgusting mix forced their king to disgorge his children and the rock. Poor Kronos suffered stomach cramps and major illness for days.

Many of the titans yelled out plans and ideas on how to capture and/or kill the godlings. The only ones who did not take part in the yelling match were Rhea, Phoebe, Koios, Oceanus, and Tethys. Kronos suspected they were on the god's side of the war, but thought better of it. After all, why would his beloved Rhea be against him? He was only thinking about preserving their precious Golden Age and their sibling's seats of power. Of course she would understand his intentions. He also believed that she was morning the loss of their children, but he had to do what he did. He was doing what was best for their rule. At least that's what he believed, but little did he know how resentful Rhea had become towards her husband ever since he swallowed their first child. Every kiss, every smile, every laugh. It was all fake. Rhea hated her husband with her very being, but he didn't know that. He didn't know how much pain he put her through. He didn't have to know. Not yet.

Kronos looked towards the beautiful woman that he had the honor of calling his wife, who sat on the throne to his left. Her multi colored eyes gazed in boredom at their arguing siblings. Kronos couldn't help but stare at her. Her long, silky, black hair. Her beautiful, ever-changing eyes. Her heart of gold, and the kind soul she was. Rhea was his definition of perfection. He gazed at the Orthrytic Silver crown placed carefully atop her head. Rhea was HIS wife, HIS queen. She was loyal to a fault, as kind as an angel, an as stubborn as a mule. He believed there was nothing that could taint such a gentle being. Nothing that could waver her love for all of their subjects. She was one of the reasons why the Golden Age was considered golden. She was the reason why their rule flourished the way it did, and she would also be the reason to their inevitable fall. But Kronos, the love sick fool he was, was oblivious to her true intentions. He refused to believe Rhea would ever betray him.

Kronos' musings were cut short at the sound of weapons being drawn. Looking away from his wife, he saw Hyperion and Krios on the verge of attacking each other in close quarters combat. Knowing a fight would solve nothing, the irritated Titan King quickly stood from his throne, summoning his scythe to his right hand. Kronos promptly drove the staff end into the concrete floor below him, causing a three-inch depression into the foundation. The sound cracked against the throne room's walls, and a pulse of energy pushed the gathered titans just enough to cause them to stumble. This got their attention. With a booming voice, Kronos regained order. "Enough!" Krios and Hyperion froze in place. "Krios! Hyperion! Sheath your weapons and seat yourselves back into your thrones before I force you onto them!" The aforementioned titans quickly did as instructed without question. No one wanted to incur Kronos' wrath in his current mood. Sighing, Kronos calmly sat back down, balancing his scythe against his thrown in case he needed it again. "Now that I have your attention, let me just announce that fighting amongst ourselves will solve nothing." He flashed a menacing scowl his two brothers. Said brothers shifted in their thrones uncomfortably. "Who here knows about my children's whereabouts?"

No one spoke until Themis – a young-looking, curly black-haired, brown-eyed, Titaness – calmly rose from her silver throne with her arms crossed behind her back. She looked at Kronos, patiently waiting for him to allow her to speak. At his nod, she cleared her throat. "My lord, there have been rumors that the gods currently reside somewhere in Thessaly. If it is your will, I will go and search with two others." She said with confidence only a deity of divine judgment would have.

Kronos pondered this for a few seconds before nodding his head in agreement. "Those who oppose?"

No one spoke. All coming to an agreement.

Nodding his head, the Titan King turned to look towards Themis. "It has been decided. You and two others shall venture to Thessaly in search of the godlings. If you find them, report back to me immediately. Do not approach them unless given the opportunity. Am I understood?"

"Yes my lord, as is your will."

Kronos nodded towards her (Themis sat back down onto her throne, wondering about who to take on their mission). "Is there anything further to discuss?" There was once again no answer. "Very well, council dismissed." With that he and the rest of the council flashed away. The only being left in the throne room was Queen Rhea who had a solemn look on her face.

Looking up to the sealing of the temple a single, golden tear fell from her right eye, cascading down her cheek, and onto the marble floor. "Fates help them," she prayed before she too flashed off, not noticing the lone figure in the corner of the room hidden in the shadows.

Sad, timeless eyes watched as the Queen of Orthrys glowed a soft golden light and disappeared. The Creator hated having to witness family torn apart by conflict. Determination quickly replaced sorrow. He would fix that, among other things wrong with this pointless war.

Knowing what he needed to do, he flashed away to who knows where. He could only hope that his plan would work, or all else will end in catastrophe.