The holy Rhea nodded her agreement. "What you say is right."
"But how will you win other great gods to help you? To rebel against the God-King is a path with no way back. Even remaining neutral is already tantamount to betrayal."
"The gods fear the invincible God-King—how will you accomplish this?"
Zeus smiled slightly and replied, "The gods fear Father only because He still seems to possess unmatched power."
"Once it becomes clear that Father does not have overwhelming, absolute might, then many great gods who resent Him will no longer obey Him."
Zeus said softly, "A rule built on pure violence collapses the instant absolute violence is lost."
"And so long as the great gods who stand with us are numerous enough, those who are neutral will gradually incline toward us."
"I have no intention of harming or humiliating any of the gods. I will guarantee the gods' honor—by which I mean their station, authority, and reputation; the same meaning applies later as well. Those who are not now granted honor by Father, I also guarantee will have their honor in the new age."
"For the gods who already possess their own honor, I guarantee they will retain it, without the least harm; and their children, in the new age, will likewise possess honor of their own."
The Mother Goddess Rhea nodded again and again; much of the worry on her divine features dispersed. Zeus's words let her see hope.
In former days, the great and invincible Sky-Father Uranus was overthrown by united gods; however strong Kronos might be, He could not, by His strength alone, oppose all the gods.
The difficulty lay in how to unite the gods.
She began slowly: "In the action to overthrow the Father Uranus, it was the great Mother of All, Gaia, who stood forth—stood at our side—and gave us courage; thus we dared resist the Sky-Lord and at last succeeded."
"Now, if we wish to overthrow the rule of Uranus's son, we too must first gain the support of the great Mother."
"Let us go see the Mother now."
Zeus smiled and said, "Is the great Mother not already supporting us?"
"Right now we should not ask the Mother to take the lead; we need first to do something that makes the Mother stand entirely at our side."
These words from Zeus greatly surprised Rhea; after thinking carefully, she felt they made sense.
For a small child to say he would resist the God-King who rules the cosmos, and then ask the Mother of All to stand with him—that would be far too fanciful.
Only when this child accomplished what the gods could not do—ripping the mask of invincibility from the God-King—would there be a chance for the Mother of All to upend the table against Him.
Zeus continued, "Mother, please share with me what has happened recently. I need to know more."
Rhea nodded, extended a fair, lustrous forefinger, and touched it to Zeus's brow; in but an instant she had transmitted to Zeus all she knew of recent events.
He reviewed it closely: since Rhea's last visit, the surface of the whole cosmos had been quite calm; nothing had happened, save that there were a few more Titan children.
Zeus nodded and said, "Nothing much has happened in the world of late. The most important first step now is to make a name."
"Weaken Father's power—and rise to fame upon Father's name."
Rhea asked, "How can that be done?"
Zeus said gravely, "My authority can weaken Father—but only if He offers no resistance. Mother, your authority is flow and vitality within the world; can you deprive Father of vitality and motion?"
Rhea shook her head, with a trace of helplessness in her tone. "The God-King is too strong. I cannot. Even if we add the holy Theia and the bright Phoebe, together we cannot leave the God-King unable to resist."
As Zeus had expected, he nodded and smiled. "Then it seems we must first seek the help of a sage."
Rhea looked a little surprised. "Who?"
"Metis—the Oceanid daughter of Oceanus, the encircling ocean current, and Tethys, who moistens the world." As Zeus spoke the name, a fleeting, ineffable ripple flashed in the depths of His golden eyes.
Rhea nodded lightly. "So it is she. I have heard this daughter of Oceanus is rather clever, and much beloved by Oceanus and Tethys."
The Mother Goddess then frowned slightly and asked in return, "But does she truly have the courage and ability to take part in this? She is but a little sea nymph—what help can she be?"
Zeus arched a brow and smiled, speaking softly: "Courage is the beginning of success, and wisdom is its guarantee."
Having said this, Zeus's gaze sharpened; his tone grew firm. "Mother, be at ease. Focus on steadying Father. Leave all else to me, and await my news."
The illustrious Rhea, solemn of face, nodded. At last she stroked Zeus's cheek. "My child, do not be hasty. You must be careful."
Zeus nodded hard. The Queen managed a wan smile and, setting aside that heavy topic, kept Him company, chatting of amusing happenings across the cosmos; only after a long while did she leave, reluctantly.
Watching Rhea's figure recede, Zeus's face grew more severe. He flew straight toward the encircling ocean current beyond the world. From now on, not a single step could go awry.
To contend with a God-King who had centralized power for countless ages—this was not so much nine deaths for one life as ten thousand deaths in pursuit of life.
And the successful beginning of it all would depend upon the help of this goddess.
"Metis—the goddess of wisdom."
Oceanus, god of the world-encircling current, eldest of the Titans, and Tethys, the goddess who moistens all things, had countless children—so many that even They could not keep count.
But the children They had personally and carefully engendered were not many; each law They had begotten with care They cherished beyond measure.
Nor did They dare place them within the world, for the God-King Kronos now was a sort who could swallow even children He had engendered Himself.
If by some mishap one were swallowed by the God-King, regret would be too late—there would be nowhere even to weep.
Back when Kronos pulled that "divine" stunt, it had very nearly sent Oceanus off then and there—nearly cast Him into eternal slumber.
No god, however good-tempered, could treat that as nothing; old grievances lay buried deep.
Their family had long been cool with the present God-King. Gentle of nature, kind and harmonious as They were, They disdained Kronos's ways but could not afford to provoke Him; naturally, They could only avoid Him.
Their beloved children—especially those endowed with laws—were kept always at Their side. Even though the children yearned to live within the bustling world, They would not allow them to enter it.
This was the deepest love and protection They could give Their children.
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