When Styx saw the gentle smile on Zeus's face as he came out personally to welcome them, she was overjoyed. She immediately pulled Pallas along and hastened to stand before Zeus.
She bent the knee respectfully. "Honored son of the Queen of the Gods, future sovereign, illustrious Zeus—Styx has come to heed your command."
Pallas likewise went to one knee; though his tone held a trace of nerves, it was firm. "Honored Zeus, your will is Pallas's will. I pledge my service to you."
Their children also bent the knee and swore fealty.
Zeus laughed heartily, bade them rise, and invited them to enter the temple and sit with the assembled gods.
Pallas and Styx had four children, two sons and two daughters. They were:
Nike, goddess of Victory, whose figure ever accompanies success and triumph.
Kratos, embodiment of Might and Authority, a representation of power and dominion.
Bia, goddess of Force or Violence, the pure incarnation of irresistible, primal strength.
Zelus, embodiment of Rivalry, Zeal, and the thirst for glory, endowed with courage and ardor, tenacity and grit.
They would be the most loyal attendants of Zeus, forever at his side.
And precisely because they would forever follow at Zeus's side, they would become invincible gods, embodiments of strength and honor.
For victory always stands behind the victor.
They dwell with Zeus.
And Zeus, forever, prevails.
Of course, for now they had no honors to speak of—just small fry.
Before long, Pallas's brothers followed one after another, arriving in turn.
You could tell they each harbored their own little designs, secretly vying among themselves for that "first to pledge" seat, wishing to leave the deepest impression in Zeus's mind.
Crius's eldest son Astraeus came at the quickest pace, bringing his beautiful wife, Eos the Dawn, and their four sons.
They had, for the moment, only four sons—the Four Winds:
Eurus, god of the East Wind;
Notus, god of the South Wind;
Zephyrus, god of the West Wind;
Boreas, god of the North Wind.
These pitiable third-generation Titans shared the authority of the winds and ought to have enjoyed exalted status within the cosmos.
Now they could only drift aimlessly through the starry void, forbidden to enter the world within.
Even if they could stir up cosmic storms that tore all things apart, before the God-King Kronos they were no different from a passing breeze.
Arriving with Astraeus were the children of Hyperion: Helios, the radiant sun god, and Selene, the flawless moon goddess.
Because their younger sister, Eos the Dawn, was Astraeus's wife, their families were closest, and they agreed to come pledge themselves together.
However, when they saw Styx's whole household already seated safely within the temple, the smiles on the faces of those who came later failed to bloom as happily.
They were late!
Zeus did not care about their little schemes; on the contrary, seeing that they were not so united put him at ease.
Laughing aloud, he held the first grand feast of the rise of the new gods upon Olympus, solemnly welcoming the arrival of the deities.
It was also to celebrate that they had successfully driven back Kronos's first assault and established the prestige of the Olympian gods.
The last to arrive was Perses. This Titan had not yet contracted marriage with Asteria, goddess of the stars; they were not yet well acquainted.
He came alone, and his pursuit of honor was not yet strong.
All Olympus plunged into joyful revelry—songs and dances in full flourish, a scene of fresh vitality.
Meanwhile, on Mount Othrys, the atmosphere was decidedly heavy.
Or rather, suffocating.
After the God-King summoned the gods, eight Titan giants ultimately came in answer.
Queen Rhea certainly would not heed him, and the Ocean Lord and his consort, naturally, would not either.
The Oceanic line had gone all-in for Zeus; Metis no longer hid, not in the least—masks were torn away completely.
As for the other Titans, whatever was in their hearts, in the end they chose to come.
Besides the primordial Titans, there were also Mother Gaia and Lady Night, Nyx, as well as bright Aether and Day, Hemera, and then Pontus, god of the sea.
In numbers, the two sides were not far apart.
But speaking of hard power, the difference was vast—worlds apart.
The good news was that Zeus's side now stood united as one.
As for Kronos's side—
If it truly came to blows, he would likely be mobbed.
Those allies once intimate with him—standing by and watching was already doing him justice.
One misstep, and they might switch sides on the spot—then turn their spears back upon him.
The only one who brought his children along was Iapetus, Weaver of Death, the God-King's most loyal, diehard supporter.
Kronos's fearless courage and peerless strength in sundering the mingled world and sending the supreme Father, Uranus, into eternal slumber had conquered Iapetus utterly, winning his heartfelt submission.
Through the countless ages, the house of Iapetus enjoyed great favor from Kronos. They were the God-King's staunchest supporters, the arm he trusted most.
He came with his three sons—Atlas, Menoetius, and Prometheus—to give his all in support.
But his wife, the Oceanid Clymene, did not come.
These three sons of Iapetus were all standouts among the second-generation Titans—gifted in word and deed, their strength extraordinary.
They were the only family to have received special favor from Kronos.
Kronos had granted their house uncommon honors, so the whole family (save for Clymene) were basically diehards for Kronos (Prometheus, being a clever god, was less so).
The gods gathered in the temple on Mount Othrys. Kronos sat high upon the God-King's throne, his deep eyes sweeping over the gods below—one by one impassive, faces indifferent—and his resentment only grew.
Especially the empty seat of the Queen beside him—such a colossal mockery sitting right there stoked his rage all the more.
He now even regretted in private that he had not destroyed that empty Queen's seat ahead of time; too lost in thought, he had actually forgotten.
With all the gods now present, it was not suitable to make a move; otherwise he would lose even more face.
Kronos spoke slowly. His tone seemed very sincere; even his former majesty had abated somewhat, replaced by warmth.
"Roots of the cosmos, foundation of the universe—honored gods—we have not gathered like this for some time. Here and now, I offer you my most heartfelt remembrance."
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