“You didn’t bribe Helios to start shit, did you?”
Erebus’s laughter brightened up Tartarus.
5
After ensuring that Hermes had his answer, Nyx went back to Tartarus. She wasn’t interested in hearing anyone else’s opinion of the impending war. If Zeus had declared war on Kronos, there was only one person who might be able to change Nyx’s mind.
Gaia.
The mother of Earth.
She currently resided deep in Tartarus’s depths, resting so far below the surface that only Nyx knew where to find her. Aside from the primordials who had created themselves, each god and titan owed themselves in some way to Gaia. Kronos was her son; Zeus was her grandson, and no one had watched the skirmishes of immortals like she had.
Nyx never liked to disturb those who rested in her sanctuary. If anyone had a reason to be there, it was Gaia. When Gaia’s husband, Uranos, had begun imprisoning some of their children, she tried to reason with him. Uranos was concerned that one of his children would overthrow him, but Gaia didn’t see why that warranted such a strong reaction.
Uranos responded by continuing to capture their children, now imprisoning them in Earth’s own depths—in a part of Gaia. She was taunted with the cries of her own sons and daughters, unable to see the sun and wasting away in the universe she had built for them.
Gaia had gone to her remaining children and asked for help in overthrowing their father. The only one who responded was Kronos. It was another few years of bloody battle, but eventually, Kronos emerged victorious. Yet, in a tale that had existed since the dawn of time, Kronos took advantage of his mother and drained her of her power.
Gaia was outraged. In a cruel twist of fate, she learned too late that it was Kronos that Uranos was afraid of. She tried to call out to the remnants of her husband, spread all over the Earth, but she was too late. Gaia apologized to the dying breaths of Uranos. He was unable to respond, but to let her know that he forgave her, Uranos cursed Kronos.
Kronos would one day be overthrown by one of his sons like he had done to his father. Gaia took solace in this and retreated to Tartarus, mourning the husband she lost and the son who had plundered her.
Nyx knew that Gaia still heard everything that happened on the Earth’s surface, for better or worse. Gaia was able to tune it out in Tartarus, but Nyx had a suspicion that she had been listening ever since Rhea was able to smuggle Zeus out from Kronos’s grasp. For the first hundred years of his rule, Kronos ate his children as soon as they were born, afraid of Uranos’s curse. Zeus survived infancy, and then somewhere in Tartarus, Gaia sat up straighter and waited to watch the family legacy unfurl—sons overthrowing their fathers.
No one would change Nyx’s mind except Gaia. If Gaia said that this was a war that was worth getting behind, Nyx would. It was as simple as that. Nyx saw a camaraderie in Gaia, both primordial and more ancient than some of these newer gods could even comprehend. There was a growing fear in Nyx’s stomach when she looked at her relationship with Erebus that they were soon on their way to becoming another cautionary tale, like Uranos and Gaia. Rhea and Kronos.
Can the powerful fall in love?Nyx’s thoughts were preoccupied as she landed softly in Tartarus, choosing to walk in her human form to where she knew Mother Earth rested.Powerful men fall in love all the time. Is it love or do they enjoy their bounty and move on?
Can powerfulwomenever fall in love?
The answer was all around Nyx in Tartarus’s depths where Gaia slept—no.Something cracked in her chest, and she approached the Mother with tears in her eyes. The hills in front of Nyx began to move and shift slowly, morphing into the form of a sleeping woman in the blackness. She was taller than Mount Olympus and stretched high above Nyx, dark eyes blinking open.
“Nyx.” Her voice was tender, soft, like a mother embracing a child. “You come to me crying, child, while I rest in your depths. Have I taken advantage of your sanctuary?” Gaia moved as if to sit up and leave.
“No, Mother!” Nyx’s voice was almost panicked, and she wiped at her eyes. “I have come to seek your council.”
“I’m not sure what on. There is nothing that I can do that the Goddess of Night cannot.”
“You flatter me, Mother. I have come to ask you about… Kronos.”
The silence was loud. Nyx could have sworn that she saw the hills rise a little higher up into the sky as if Gaia grew larger to defend herself from the threat of Kronos’s name. When the silence stretched on a little too long, Nyx raised her hand in a respectful gesture and prepared to leave.
“Wait, Night. I shall answer your questions. Then, you shall leave me to another century of sleep, unmolested.”
“I oblige.” Nyx nodded her head and evaporated into her primordial form, her darkness spreading over Tartarus, so she might speak to Gaia as equals. “Zeus has formally declared war on Kronos.”
“I have heard this.”
“I have denied your grandson’s request to join his cause.”
“Do you join the cause of Kronos?” Gaia’s voice dropped lower, the hills that made up her body began to shake with anger.
“No, Mother,” Nyx snapped in response, her own voice thundering across the Underworld skies. “I have joined no cause. I told the gods and the titans that these battles will never end. It will always be son revolting against father. It will never end.”
“You are wise.” Gaia nodded in agreement. “For what do you seek my council?”
“Erebus has expressed a desire to join Zeus.”
