The Kingdoms of Eden

CHAPTER EIGHT: Deals with a Devil

In Jupiter's throne room, high up on a narrow viewing platform, tucked neatly behind an overly flattering marble statue of the king, Branna waited. The statue was taller and wider than its subject by half, and the space that it occupied left little room for Branna to find a sure footing. Her knuckles whitened as she held on to the stone with all her might; barely daring to draw breath, lest she should slip. The white marble was imbued with a smoky grey imperfection that somehow managed to impart depth and life to the likeness, and she half expected the head of the stone king to turn and ask her what she was doing. The table where the king had been sitting when they first met with him had been cleared. Flaming torches halfway up the walls of the room cast a low orange glow onto the stone surfaces, from floor, to the throne, to the vaulted ceiling. The entire setting was designed to impress and to intimidate, and it did just that without the need for a large force of guards in attendance.

Branna made herself as small as possible as she clung closely to the king's likeness when voices echoed from somewhere outside the mighty doors to the room. The doors swung open and the king, still in the humble clothing of a commoner, and his brother, Saturn, strode into the room. Saturn did not stop to take in the majesty of the chamber—he had either been there before, or he simply didn't care to feign being impressed by his brother's inclination towards overblown grandeur and professed power.

"It is such a shame brother," said Saturn, as he cast his gaze about the space, fleetingly. "You have created something truly marvellous in this place. It is a city and a civilisation to rival anything that has gone before or is yet to come. You really have a gift for design."

"It doesn't need to be a shame," replied Jupiter. "We can go on like this for as long as we want. My people are happy with the status quo. As are the peoples of the other kingdoms. When we first began this little experiment, we decided that it would one day end. And that ending would be violent and deadly. But as I have said to the others, why must it be so? I am happy. They are happy. And you happy, brother? Could you not be content with what you have? If you ended your rush towards madness, then all wars would end between the kingdoms and this land truly could become paradise. Perhaps this was what our Father intended? What we have created here far surpasses anything that can be found in the other realm. It might seem like an odd suggestion, given everything we have been through, but isn't there a rational argument to be made for simply continuing on as we have been for all this time, and leaving the humans to their own destiny?"

"I wish it could be so. I mean to say; I wish it was as simple as you say. Alas, we are on a road without turning. If I called a council of our brothers and said that I wanted peace, who would believe me? Who would even turn up? We are set fast on this trajectory. Our brothers will blame me for the destruction that is to follow, but if they were truly honest with themselves, they too crave the destruction as much as I do. It is the final destination to which we must now turn. This is why I have sought this meeting with you."

They walked across to the table and sat down.

"Do you know when the war will begin?" asked Saturn. "I only ask as there are a number of personal issues that I would like to deal with before the end, and it would be helpful to know how long I have to attend to them. I'm not looking for some insight into your battle plans, just a sense of when the war will start."

"I can't be certain. For two years there have been skirmishes. You know the kind of thing? Small incursions into my territory. They are testing me. They see my kingdom as the greatest prize. Once I have been conquered the victor will easily sweep aside the other kingdoms and then they will set their sights on you. It will take years. Probably."

"And how well have you faired in these tests?"

Jupiter smiled.

"I am still here," he replied, simply.