In the glorious halls of the Olympian Council, the Gods of the Greek Realms sat in a tense silence upon their throne, their colossal forms a symbol of their power and authority.
Yet, standing at the very center of the halls, a being that was equal to their stature stared them all down with barely hidden contempt. His natural stature was equal to the gods, who had to use their innate divine nature to appear as large as he was.
He, whose hair shone like the fresh leaves of the trees and with a presence born of his innate strength, stood silently, as if he were the very center of a gravitational field, which he might as well have been, given his sheer strength given to him by his mother.
This was none other than Porphyrion. The eldest of Gaia's latest brood. A Gigas, or a Giant, as the future generations would come to call them.
It was also worth mentioning that he was born specifically to usurp Zeus's authority, just like the rest of his kin.
Yet, this bane of the Gods had come here today, not to fight, but to parley, just like his mother had ordered him to.
It was the only reason why the King of the Gods, the Almighty Zeus, was content to glare at the Giant instead of striking at him with his Master Bolt. That, and the fact that Brolios would smack him silly for attacking a messenger without a proper cause.
Soon, this silent standoff came to an end when a terrifying pressure briefly erupted in the chamber before retreating, revealing two gods who had flashed over at the news of the Gigas's arrival.
The first needed no introduction across the Greek realms, for his power and authority were well known, not to mention his personal connections that spanned across the realms.
Brolios Asterion. The God of Destruction, Nature, the Lost, and Freedom. And the one being that nobody in the Greek Realms wants to cross, no matter what.
However, it was the goddess accompanying him that attracted all the attention in the chamber.
Her very presence radiated a kind of charm that drew in everyone. Her appearance, which kept changing based on who was observing her, shifted to what the person observing her would define as 'Ideal beauty'.
Yet, it was not her physical appearance, which made most of the male gods and even the Giant practically drool with desire, that drew in the attention of the gods and the Giant, even if it was one of the reasons.
It was her overwhelmingly powerful divinity honed to perfection and beyond. The feeling of tender care, similar to how most of the married couples in these halls would feel from their spouses. A feeling that they could only describe as love.
However, beneath that Love, they also felt aggression. Sheer power, the likes of which very few gods could ever hope to embody.
Of course, it was the latter feeling that instantly drew in Ares, the God of War, to the woman.
The woman observed all of this and unconsciously wanted to step back. To hide behind her friend and let him take care of it all. But the other aspect within herself abhorred such a move. One that would make her appear as a weak goddess who cannot fight for herself and would be easy prey for those arrogant enough to think they could own her.
'If that is the kind of thought I wanted to leave behind in these gods, what was the point of all that training?'
This single thought solidified her mind, allowing her to stand tall and proud before declaring her presence.
"Hail, Council of Olympus. Today, I come before you to declare my presence in these realms. My name is Aphrodite, and I am the Goddess of Love and Beauty."
Arrogant. Beyond Overconfidence. That was the thought that would have passed through all the gods present if she had done this any other time.
However, the presence of her friend by her side smoothed things over faster than she would have expected, as Zeus simply nodded absentmindedly, still busy glaring at Porphyrion while giving Brolios pitiful looks, like a child who was bullied outside and sought help from his older brother. Much to Brolios's amusement.
It was only when Brolios waved his hand and manifested a throne for Aphrodite, an act to which none of the gods responded since this was not the time to talk about this, that Porphyrion finally made his reason for this arrival known.
First, he bowed lightly with a mocking expression, showing his dismissal of the gods, even though his eyes held real respect when he bowed towards Brolios.
Then, he spoke. His words resounded with power derived from the Earth Mother herself.
"Hail, Gods of Olympus. I am Porphyrion, the eldest of the Gigantes, the children of Mother Earth and Tartarus."
"Today, I come before you to inform you of Mother Earth's discontent with how things have been going so far in these realms."
The reaction was instant as the Olympians nearly lost control of their powers in sheer rage. Yet, wisdom prevailed instead of petty instincts, allowing them to remain calm, much to Porphyrion's disappointment since he wanted to test himself against these gods.
Then, the giant turned to the God of Destruction and spoke softly.
"This discontent doesn't extend to the Olympians, for you have all managed your domains adequately. Instead, her anger stems from your latest experiment, Lord Brolios."
Brolios said nothing, simply staring at the Giant and motioning him to keep talking, which the Giant did, even though he felt a chill in his heart at the neutral expressions on the god.
When he and his kin were born from Gaia, they had all inherited the memory of the earth, which showed everything that the gods and goddesses of Olympus had ever done in this world. It was an advantage that the Earth Mother gave them so that, should the day come when they would need to fulfill their purpose of existence, they could target the weaknesses of these divine beings.
Yet, there was one being that Mother Earth could never counter. One god for whom there was no specific Gigas born as a counterpart. One being that even the primordial of the Earth itself fears. One who was favored by Chaos itself, if its tolerance for his oath during the Titan War was anything to go by.
And it was none other than this very god in front of him, who had the guts and the power to threaten Mother Earth herself back then.
Knowing that his next words could very well cause his erasure from existence with no chance for reforming, Porphyrion spoke slowly and softly.
"Mother Earth is angry with the birth of the abominations that you and Athena the Wise created. Those halflings that are neither human nor divine but stuck in between. She wishes for their erasure."
"And what if we refuse? Porphyrion of the Gigantes? Will your kin go to war with my own? If so, I will warn you to look at what happened to the Titans, your elder and stronger kin, before you let your hubris control you."
Porphyrion fell silent at those words. Yet, Brolios was not done.
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I stood up from my throne and walked towards the Gigas.
Truthfully, I am not mad. I am not even disappointed. Because I knew long ago that Gaia would not approve of my Demigod project.
I felt it long ago, on that day when Athena and I first conceived this project in the first place. That blaring wrongness in my domain of Nature. I knew that reaction was not just the very concept of 'nature' conflicting with artificial life, but also Mother Earth herself, who recoiled at the idea of their existence.
I knew then and there that there would come a day when she would retaliate, and I prepared for it accordingly.
However, in the many years since then, I have had the time to contemplate my decisions and have come to realize how arrogant I was being back then by thinking that I could simply threaten her into silence with my power.
Case in point? The birth of these Gigantes.
Porphyrion's very Ki feels so similar to Zeus that I would be a fool not to recognize that he was born specifically to counter Zeus and his natural domain of lightning. A gift given to the giant by Mother Earth.
If my guess is right, the rest of the Gigantes probably also have similar abilities to counter the rest of my family, except for Aphrodite, who has just been revealed to the world, and I, who literally cannot be countered since the very nature of my Destruction means that there is absolutely nothing that it cannot destroy. That and the fact that the Greek realms have already stabilized completely from their conceptual nature, which means that there is literally nothing in these realms that can go against me.
But still, it shows that Gaia is not some static force that will be cowed by my power. She will learn and adapt.
'Then again, there is really no need for us to fight now, is there?'
I saw the trepidation in Porphyrion's body language, probably born out of fear after he had probably heard all those stories about my exploits in the past.
Then, he went still when I placed my palm on his shoulder.
"Tell me, Porphyrion, how were you and your kin born?"
"...My Lord?"
"Were you born out of a simple affair between Mother Earth and Tartarus? Or were you created for a specific purpose?"
Instantly, I saw the pride in his eyes bloom as he nodded happily, like a toddler.
Yes. A toddler. I must not forget that, despite his power and wisdom, these beings are still relatively young, especially when compared to my and my siblings' ages.
"We were born with purpose, my lord. Mother created us so that we could act as the counterbalance for the Olympians and, should the day ever come when they fail to do their duty, take over their domains ourselves. I would say that we were born to be better than our siblings."
'.....Why does he remind me so much of a younger Zeus? Did Gaia replicate my siblings' personalities and place them within these Gigantes? Thoughts for later.'
I felt bad for what I was about to do for this young one who was beaming with so much pride. But, for him and, through him, and me, Mother Earth to see my point, I had no choice but to say these hurtful words.
"Then, Porphyrion, can you describe to me what is so different between you and your kin, and my Demigods?"
Once again, he puffed up his chest in pride as he spoke.
"Of course, My Lord. My kin and I were born from Mother Earth and Tartarus. We are born-"
"No. Porphyrion. I do not mean this."
At his confused look, I elaborated.
"I mean to ask, is there any difference between why you and your kin were born, and why my Demigods were created?"
"...I do not understand."
"You, the Gigantes, were born specifically for a purpose. To act as a balance for my siblings and to replace them should the need ever arise, based on your own words, correct?"
He nodded, following me so far.
"Then, what is the difference between you, who were created for a specific purpose by Gaia, and my Demigods, who were also created for a specific purpose, aside from the means of your births?"
Porphyrion fell silent at my words.
"What is the difference between you, who were given your purposes from the very moment of your birth, as if you were mere tools to act out your mother's will, and the Demigods, who were similarly born from my plan to create a race of warriors that would fight for us gods?"
He had no answer to my words as he tried to understand what I was saying, showing how he had never even considered these points.
And given that I haven't felt anything from my domain of Nature, I am guessing that Gaia herself is also thinking about this point, which even she might have never thought about.
After all, for a Primordial, what use was there in thinking about the will and the freedom of choice of lesser beings?
The tragic part here is that Gaia genuinely loves her children. I know this better than anyone since my connection to her is the strongest out of every other living being on the planet, even if we have a love-hate relationship most of the time. However, this primordial being is incapable of truly understanding the minds of her children.
In simple words, she is too naive, willful, and selfish.
Shaking my head to get rid of those thoughts, I turned back to Porphyrion.
"Porphyrion, I think there is no difference between your kin and my own creations, except for one."
"...What is it?"
"The freedom of choice."
Once again, deafening silence engulfed the halls as the Gigas gave me a stunned look. One that I returned with a smile.
"Even though my Demigods are born with the express intent to be warriors, they are still allowed to live their childhoods as any human does. This way, they are allowed to grow up and choose what they want to become. And should they choose not to become warriors? I make sure that their choices are respected. After all, I would be unworthy of my domain of Freedom if I neglected their choices."
"However, I am guessing, based on your expressions and your words so far, you were never given a choice on what you want to do, instead of just doing what you should do. Yes?"
Once again, there was no answer as Porphyrion looked contemplative. One that showed me that he had never considered even the existence of the concept known as 'choice'. Something that rubbed me the wrong way.
So, I decided on a path. One that would probably not be considered wise, but felt right to me.
"Porphyrion of the Gigantes. I have a proposal, if you will hear it."
"...Yes, My Lord."
"You say Mother Earth created you to counter my siblings, yes? Then, why not see how they rule these lands yourself? Why not invite your kin to join you in staying at Olympus?"
""Brother!?/Brolios!?/Uncle!?""
Various voices of protest rang out in the halls, but I simply raised my hand, silencing them all.
"I am giving you a choice, Porphyrion. The choice to join us in this council. You will not have any real authority since you did not earn this status as my siblings did. But you will see exactly how we rule these realms and have the chance to see if my Demigods are worthy enough to continue existing. In exchange, should you choose to, I will speak to Mother Earth and help to give you and your kin the freedom of choice."
"What say you? Porphyrion, eldest of the Gigantes?"
Porphyrion remained silent for a long time before finally making his choice. The very first one he ever made.
And one that would change the fate of these lands for all time to come.
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