1.20: Deals

Prometheus stood to greet the man as he strode in. Zeus was big, the same size Typhon now was, with a broad frame and powerful muscles that he displayed with a loose tunic. His red hair was long, held back with a ponytail, and his thick beard matched its color. Except for his exceptional size and fitness, though, he actually looked completely human - unusual for a titan.


"In answer to your question," Zeus said, "Amalthea raised me in a side-chamber to the cave beneath this stronghold."

"You were raised in a cave?" Echidna asked.

"My grandmother obtained one of the suspended animation pods from Tartarus when I was born to help with my education, and Rhea visited discretely when she was here," Zeus explained, "Also, as you can see, all I have to do is adjust my size a little and I can easily pass for a human - you yourself have crossed paths with me half a dozen times, Prometheus, and Typhon - I fought under your command at Ierapetra." To emphasize his point, Zeus shrank down and changed slightly to assume the appearance of a fit, but otherwise forgettable warrior, and then shifted back to his natural form.

"All this time..." Prometheus said, "I thought I'd seen your face before."

"I'm sure that's why," Zeus nodded, "Now, I've been listening to your debate from the hallway..."

"Wait, wait, wait," Typhon held up a hand, "With all due respect to Amalthea, how do we know they're telling the truth about who Zeus is?"

Zeus snapped his fingers and a tiny bolt of lightning struck the map on the table, scorching the little model of the citadel.

"So," Prometheus said, "You'll be wanting the Malanginui Legacy then."

"Do you object?"

"I'm sacrificing a great deal to remove one of Malanginui's successors from the throne in Knossos, I'm not eager to help another one take his place."

"I understand," Zeus nodded, "You don't know me, after all. But, unlike you, I grew up mingling with the humans you love so much. I've eaten with them, drank with them, fought with them, and made love to them. I have no more desire to see them hurt than you do. And aren't they, ultimately, what this conflict is about?"

"You would see them freed from oppression?" Prometheus asked.

"Yes. No more slaves on Crete," Zeus nodded, "A king still in Knossos, yes, but a king that places as much value on a human's life as a titan's life."

"And you want the job?" Prometheus inferred.

"Yes," Zeus said honestly, "Do you want it?"

"I only want to see Hekate's hope for a free Crete come to pass," Prometheus said, "I have little interest in thrones and crowns and the like."

"Seems like we have little to quarrel over, then," Zeus said.

"I still don't follow," Typhon said, "How does he help us anymore than any of the other titans that followed you into this war? He's not a Legacy Bearer, right?"

"No, but as an electromancer he'll be immune to Kronos's old-fashioned lightning attacks," Prometheus said, "An advantage none of the rest of us can claim."

"I assume so," Zeus hedged slightly, "Though I would propose that we maximize our chances through the element of surprise."

"You have something specific in mind?" Prometheus asked.

"Kronos is doubtlessly on his way here but he has no idea who I am," Zeus answered, "Won't he be pleased when I come to him with an opportunity to destroy you? To show him the secret passage into the cavern below us?"

"You want to stand our ground here so that we can create a trap for Kronos?" Typhon asked.

"Yes. Don't send your human warriors home yet - force Kronos to fight his way through them, perhaps let me kill a few, and then he'll be ready to walk right into our trap."

"Kill a few?!" Prometheus asked, "The point is to save the humans!"

"To be fair," Echidna said, "It's a war. Some were always going to die in the course of winning our freedom."

"Yeah," Typhon said, "if sacrificing a man, or a thousand men, brings us close to winning the game, then what does it matter who kills them?"

To hear the two of them talk like that deeply unsettled Prometheus - it was a valid point, perhaps, but it was still cold blooded.

"No," Prometheus shook his head, "we can't murder our own men for an advantage. There has to be a line and I'm drawing it there. Besides, if you want to win Kronos's trust, the way to do it isn't by giving him human blood, it's by giving him something he actually values." Prometheus slid Pandora's Box across the table to Zeus.

Echidna and Typhon protested loudly, but Prometheus calmed them down, "It's useless without the key," Prometheus said, "Which I'm keeping. But having the box will make Kronos feel like he's winning. That'll make him confident, easier to fool. Agreed?"

Zeus took the box happily, "Agreed."