OLYMPUS
"Why is he not recovering even after we have poured nectar down his throat and over his wounds?" Aphrodite asked in panic as she observed the pale face of Aegon
"That's because his body has already healed itself but the attack of Kronos affected his soul. Do remember that the scythe of Kronos affects the soul and even a primordial God, like Ouranos never managed to heal himself. The fact that Aegon has managed to hold himself this long is because of Lady Hestia's fire and its ability to heal the wound." Prometheus said as that was the conclusion that he arrived after observing the bedridden Aegon
"I should have been there with him." Zeus blamed himself for the situation. If he and his siblings were not out of commission then Aegon would not have attacked Othrys alone
"Aegon will need some time to recover his strength and restore his soul. The only thing that we can do right now is to not waste the opportunity Lord Aegon has brought us. The Titan army is scattered by the attack of Aegon and his army. We must use this glaring weakness to take out the rest of the Titans." Hades suggested
"Unfortunately we have another problem on our hands." Iris said as she and the Titaness Leto entered the chamber together with worry etched on their faces
"What do you mean lady Iris?" Poseidon asked as he had a strange feeling this was bad news
"Before lord Aegon's attack on Othrys, he had entrusted me with watching over a creature born from the union of Ouranos and Gea. It is called the Ophiotaurus and lord Aegon was of the opinion that the Titans may use it as a sacrifice to boost their power to overcome the Olympian gods. Right now Coeus, Crius and Menoetius have captured the creature. If they sacrifice the creature's entrails to fire then our cause will be doomed."
The news brought by Iris troubled the gods and their Titan allies.
"Our only chance at winning against Kronos is because of the prophecy that Ouranos delivered saying that the children of Kronos will overthrow him. By sacrificing the entrails of Ophiotaurus, Kronos can circumvent that prophecy." Prometheus mused grimly
"The name crooked one is apt for Kronos." Hera murmured as the predicament they found themselves in began to sink in.
"I am sorry to say that I have more bad news." Hecate said as the goddess of magic entered the chamber drawing the attention of Gods and Titans alike
"What has happened lady Hecate?" Zeus asked in concern
"Lord Pan contacted me and informed that the Titan army burning the land has begun to withdraw back to Othrys." Hecate said
"Isn't that a good thing?" Demeter asked confused
"Yes but the reason they are pulling back is because they no longer need to draw our attention to the Titan army. We will be occupied by the threat of Typhon." Hecaumte said and there was frosty silence that descended into the room
"Kronos unleashed Typhon?" Prometheus asked incredulously while his hands shook from fright at the very thought of the hundred-headed monster being free
"That monster will destroy everything in its path. It won't care whether you are a Titan or God. It is just a monster of pure destruction." Leto whispered with fright
"Don't fall for that trap."
They all heard a voice groan out and all their eyes locked on to a wide-awake Aegon who struggled to sit up. Hestia and Aphrodite immediately helped him to sit upon the bed.
"Don't overexert yourself." Hestia admonished him
"Just let me out of this closed-off room. I will heal faster under steady sunlight." Aegon said as he struggled to stand up from the bed. Hestia and Aphrodite helped him up from the bed and slowly they began moving out of the chamber into an open space. The other gods and Titans observed the trio bathing in the sunlight. To their surprise, Aegon began to rapidly lose his pale skin and regained some colour. In fact, the God of the upper heavens managed to stand on his own feet in a short amount of time.
"Lord Aegon, what do you mean by the trap?" Prometheus asked suppressing the urge to question Aegon about his ridiculous healing ability to restore himself from an attack from that scythe
"Typhon is a trap set by Kronos. The Titan King knows that we will concentrate all our powers to stop that thing from destroying this world. In that time he can send the remaining forces of his army to siege Olympus and this time he himself will lead the charge. The only problem is that in this chaos we should also worry about the Ophiotaurus." Aegon said and everyone looked grim at the picture that Aegon was drawing up
"We will have to split our forces and in doing so we leave Olympus in a weakened state. The only silver lining in this situation is that Kronos will not be able to assemble a large army since Lord Aegon took them out in his attack on Othrys." Prometheus mused
Zeus became tired of hearing how the situation was favouring Kronos so he stepped in.
"Aegon, you have led Olympian army to victory with your strategy throughout this war. What is it that you suggest we do?" Zeus asked trusting his mentor and friend to come up with a solution
"The entails of Ophiotaurus cannot be allowed to be sacrificed by Titans. It must be stopped and seeing as goddess Iris reports there are three Titans near the sea serpent a strong warrior must destroy them. I can see no other person to accomplish this but you Zeus. You have the power to destroy the three Titans and disrupt the ritual." Aegon nodded at his student who nodded in agreement at the task that was before him
"Typhon, on the other hand, is a tricky matter. There is no guarantee that we will be able to defeat the monster with pure power alone in a short time. If we had more time we could bring Typhon down but this war has gone long enough. The world is bleeding because of this war and my strategy is designed to stop this war in seven days." Aegon took a deep breath and continued
"Typhon will be fought to a standstill by a group of gods. Hades, Poseidon, Demeter, Hera, Aphrodite and myself. We can hold back Typhon for seven days and by that time Zeus can join us after he put an end to the ritual of sacrifice." Aegon proposed and the gods agreed
"What about Kronos, lord Aegon?" Prometheus asked
"There is no doubt that Kronos will march his armies straight to Olympus but we won't give him the battle he expects." Aegon said as he nodded at the newly arrived Cottus, Briareus and Gyges.
"Kronos will have to march his armies through the narrow passes near Mount Ossa. It is there the hundred handed ones attack the Titan army with large stones from the mountain." Aegon said as he looked at the hundred handed ones who were now sporting their brave faces and looking eagerly for payback against the Titan King
"Under the guidance of Lady Leto and Lord Pan, the satyrs can create pits on the ground to trap our enemy. Lady Metis and Chiron will take charge of all Centaurs and lead them into battle from one side. Prometheus and Tecton will lead my angels to attack the Titan army from behind cutting them off from any escape route. As for Kronos, leave that to me. When the time comes I will step out from battling Typhon to greet my dear brother in battle." Aegon said as he looked at the reaction of other gods and Titans to his plan
"What if Kronos decides not to take the pass near Mt. Ossa? The Titan lord can take the long route by going around the mountain to reach Olympus." Prometheus asked and a murmur of agreement came from others as well but Aegon was not discouraged
"Releasing Typhon upon the world will make all allies of Kronos to abandon his cause. The Titan king knows that and he wants to strike at Olympus as fast as he could. The only way to reach Olympus faster with a large enough army is through the sea or through the narrow pass near Mt. Ossa. As Oceanus is neutral in this war we can expect Kronos to take the pass." Aegon assured them
"Even if that is not the case I can use my powers to ensure the Titan army take the narrow pass." Janus spoke up and Aegon smiled at the support from the God of choices and passages.
"What about me?" Hestia asked
"You will guard Olympus with all the rest of nature spirits. In this fight I want all the injured warriors to stay in Olympus and Hecate will also help." Aegon said as he nodded to the eldest daughter of Kronos and the goddess of magic
"Are you really sure you are ready to take the field again brother? Your injuries are not yet healed completely and you want to fight Typhon and Kronos within seven days. You are going to injure yourself again and this time it will be too dangerous." Aphrodite tried to discourage her twin from facing Typhon
"Aphrodite is right. You have already exhausted yourself fighting on all fronts in the duration of this war. For once stay back and recuperate and step in if the situation really calls for it." Zeus pitched in and the other gods soon followed the sky God in his opinion
In the end, it was decided that Aegon will stay in Olympus to recuperate and interfere only if the situation calls for it.
Zeus was the first to flash away from Olympus as Iris guided the way for the God of Sky straight to the Ophiotaurus. The other Olympian gods also flashed away from the mountain to battle Typhon while the Titans and minor gods began to get ready to march all the way to set the trap for Kronos.
Meanwhile, Hestia decided to sit beside the Hearth and Aegon joined her sitting at the opposite end.
"How did you know that my flames could heal you?" Hestia asked breaking the silence between them
"You know many Titans and Gods think that Zeus is the strongest among the children of Kronos. But I know for a fact that is not the case. The most powerful Olympian is sitting right across me and her flames have the power to break the energy of Kronos. This is why your flames reversed the damage dealt on my soul by Kronos but I think you already knew that." Aegon commented with a smile understanding why she never spoke about that with anyone else. If it was known that Hestia was the strongest among the Olympians every immortal being will be after her affection to tie themselves with the strongest Goddess. After all Zeus and Aegon were being silently pursued by most of the Goddesses as well as Titanesses.
"So that's why Aphrodite has been trying to influence me with her little tricks. Please do tell her not to play with my feelings." Hestia said as if she was talking about the weather
"I already did but as you know my sister tend to be a rule-breaker most of the time. She does what she wants and she will hold a grudge on anyone that tries to control her."
"Even you?" Hestia asked
"Especially me. She is the eldest sibling and she argues that I must obey her edicts for my own good." Aegon grinned as he explained the sibling dynamics between himself and his dear sister
"Even still please tell her to leave me out of her games. I do not intend to be tied down with any committed relationships." Hestia said with conviction
Aegon observed Hestia closely as he could feel that something had changed within the goddess of Hearth. His eyes widened in surprise as he realised what Hestia has accomplished in a short time and why her personality changed all of a sudden.
"You managed to become one with your domain didn't you?" Aegon asked as he leaned forward in interest
"What of it? I embraced the domain that I represent wholeheartedly. I don't see anything wrong with it." Hestia shrugged dismissively
"You may not realise this but your domain is something of an anomaly Hestia."
At her confused look, he elaborated further.
"Your domains include Hearth, Family and Home. But out of this Hearth is the one that I am most interested in. A hearth is where the flame resides in and you have taken in the properties of the flame completely into yourself." Aegon observed in fascination as he himself had somewhat went through the same process with his own domain.
"What is so special about the flame?" Hestia asked
"There are five elements involved in the creation of life. Fire, Earth, Water, Air and Space. Out of all five fire alone has the ability to remain pure and purify anything it comes in contact with. This is the same attribute that you have taken in yourself as your power has changed to emulate the properties of fire in its divine form. You will slowly understand what I am talking about as time passes." Aegon explained and that brought Hestia into deep thought
"I see. If you know this much then you yourself must have experienced something similar right?" Hestia inquired
"I am the God of Sun. I do not discriminate and share my energy with all beings, Titans, gods, monsters, nature spirits, mortals all receive my energy without fail." Aegon said and they descended into a comfortable silence
"Do you think we can win this war?" Hestia asked after some time passed
"If Zeus succeeds in disrupting the sacrifice of Ophiotaurus then we will win else we will lose." Aegon answered truthfully as he stood up
"Where are you going?" Hestia asked
"I need to find the elder Cyclops to see if they can forge a chain to bind Typhon." Aegon said and left Hestia alone in the throne room to mind the hearth
XXXXX
Kronos lounged on his throne at Othrys as he idly spun the scythe in his hand. He should not have swallowed his godly children when they were born. No, he should have carved them up with his scythe and let them fade away into the void where his father now rests. It was a mistake on his part that saw to the dismantling of his hold on this world. He had no other choice but to unleash Typhon upon the world. Now he just had to wait for his children and all those traitors to take the bait while his loyal Titans sacrifice the Ophoitaurus.
With that blasted Sun God out of the picture courtesy of his scythe all that was left to do was to bring down Olympus. After that, he will track down all traitors and force them to fade away. With all his enemies destroyed he will finally reign supreme over the world as is his right. First, he must put an end to Olympus and the world will bow at his feet once again.
His eyes shifted to the empty thrones of Othrys. Many of the Titans have fallen in this battle and he will bring them back except that traitorous Oceanus who had so far remained neutral. There was a reckoning coming for that little coward soon enough just after he demolished all those who oppose him.
His attention shifted to Atlas who entered the throne room and gave a brief now towards him.
"Your army is ready my king. All preparations have been met just as you ordered and we have word from some of our scouts. A great battle is being fought between gods and Typhon just as planned." Atlas reported with a grin
"Good. It is time to put an end to this war my faithful general. We march on Olympus today." Kronos stood up from his throne and moved close to the edge of his palace and watched the assembled army before him. It was time for his revenge.