Another vase shattered against the far wall as I hurled it. The pieces littered the marble floor beneath it. My rage grew as I spun on my heel facing Kronos.
“Are you serious? You show up to her fucking party as a ‘Hey guys, guess what we’re back, oh and by the way, we want Olympus.’” The sarcasm dripped from my voice as he watched me from across the room.
Chronos scoffed in the background, annoyance with my words edging his features.
Shrugging, I turn to him, smirking, “I’m sure it was more so your plan to crash said party since you have a raging hard-on for Nyx.”
The air in the room tightened as power leaked off Kronos from the far side. He sat in one of the plush chairs in the distance. His size was massive compared to the furniture that fits me. I had forgotten how big the Titans were, but it had been eons. His gaze was unwavering as he stared at me, with one hand rubbing under his chin. He seemed more relaxed than me, given how casual he looked. I guess time spent in Tartarus has warped his brain.
“You speak to us as if we are beneath you, Goddess, but you are the one who we predate.” Chronos’ raspy voice piped in from my right.
Sighing, I tilted my head in his direction. “Hey tale as old as time, who let who out? If it wasn’t for me—”
“Arrogance. Like your father,” Kronos interjected as he slowly stood.
“Don’t,” was the only reply I managed, anger dripping from the word.
The floor creaked beneath him as he strode over. The two imps that had been doing his bidding came out from their hiding place after my little tantrum. They hopped from place to place, staying close to their master. Kronos made it to within a foot of me before stopping. He tilted his head. “Don’t what? He is your creator, and the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Or have you forgotten that, too? Why do you think I chose you? To release us?” He paused, casting a glance towards the Primordial off to the side. He barked a fit of laughter that Chronos soon followed.
“I don’t need you for that. I never did. You’re a pawn, just like them. You, too, are disposable.”
He stopped, pointing to the imps. Suddenly a screech filled the room. Kronos looked to one of the imps, a metallic shine filtering through his gaze. The body of one of the imps starts to expand. It scratched and clawed at itself.
Before long, the screams died. It exploded, leaving pieces of singed imp flesh on my upholstery. The other imp’s eyes widened as Kronos looked at him next. The imp jumped off the end table and scurried to a far corner, tucking his tail and wings in.
Before Kronos attempted to do whatever the hell he just did again, I moved in front of him, blocking his vision from the terrified creature behind me.
“Back off,” I snapped before I realized what I was doing. “This how you treat them? They work and do your bidding, and yet you dispose of them like trash? I may be my father’s daughter, but you’re just as cruel as he is.”
“Am I? You mean nothing to the family. You never did. You want to know a little secret?” He stopped as he leans closer to me to whisper, “The Titans never forgot. The Primordials never forgot, but you already figured that out after your run-in with the God of Darkness.” He cocked his head to the side. “Must sting to know they never even considered looking for you.”
My nostrils flared at his words. The words hit home more than I cared to admit.
He leaned back on his heels, a look of accomplishment across his face. He knew he got to me, that he struck a nerve. Anger bristled the hairs on my arms as I felt my rage start to swell. Parts of the tile near my feet started to corrode as my temper flared.
A slow, evil smile curved his lips as I remained unmoving. “The Goddess of Ruin left speechless. I prefer you better this way.”
I snapped back like an idiot, not concerned that he could probably make me explode just like the imp scattered across my floor. “And the King of the Titans is so concerned with a power trip, he risks exposing us all before we’ve even begun to rage war.”
His eyes met mine, and I had a brief moment of fear before I covered with all the false bravado I could muster. Folding my arms in front of me, I stepped forward, dousing the flames of my anger and hoping my confidence showed him that I meant what I said.
“Your angle is sloppy. You can’t go in like a bull in a fucking china shop. Whether you want to admit it or not, they’re Gods. They kicked your ass last time and they will do it again. I may hate my father, but even I wouldn’t risk taking him on right now. Plus, he has his brothers, his family and let’s not forget, not all the Titans are with you.”
Kronos didn’t speak for a second as his eyes bored into mine. I kept waiting for my head to explode or for the room to suddenly burst into flames. Shit, even I didn’t know fully what he was capable of, but I did know that sometimes I should learn to shut my mouth. After what feels like an eternity, he slowly smiled. Which, to be honest, was a lot scarier than me exploding.
“Don’t worry your destructive little head. I have a plan for that, too.” His smile dropped as he continued. “You’re right about one thing. Not all the Titans are aligned with me. Let’s see if we can fix that, shall we?”
“And how exactly are we supposed to do that?” I asked, raising a brow.
“There is a Titan whose loyalties might shift faster than others. She has a brother, who if my sources are correct, who is back in Tartarus. Sway her to join us.”
I scoffed. “And if I can’t?”
Kronos didn’t miss a beat as he adjusted the lapels of his jacket. “Then you won’t get the one thing you want the most. Him.”
They didn’t say another word as they popped out of my villa. As soon as they left, I let out a breath, one that I didn’t know I was holding. Arrogant? I was arrogant. He had another thing coming if he thought I let them out to help them. If that was the case, I would have let Prometheus find me when he was looking for me. Oh no, I had a plan all my own. The sound of nails clicking on my floor made me snap back to reality. I turned, forgetting about the imp who was hiding under my coffee table.
He walked slowly toward my leg, rubbing his hands together as he held his face down. He looked sad. Well…if imps get sad or feel any emotions whatsoever.
“Rssaferr gone.” Oh, so these creatures did have names. Hmm. “But Ate saved me.”
“Yeah, yeah, don’t make a thing out of it,” I remarked, looking down at him as he stopped by my leg.
“I stay with you now?” it asked, looking up to me, an almost hopeful look on its face.
I pitied it. He was more similar to me now, since he too had no one. Sighing, I shrugged, which he took as a yes. He screeched in what I hoped was excitement, as he spread his wings, coming to perch on my shoulder.
“Now what do we do?”
A slow smile crept up my face. “I say we fuck over the Gods and Titans and show Kronos exactly what the Goddess of Mischief is capable of. Shall we?”
