Lord of the Forests
Chapter 2: King of the Forest
"If you want to see a real monster, don't look at Kronos, the Minotaur, Cyclops, or any other Kindly Ones. Sometimes, the only thing you need to do is to look in a mirror." Arsylvos, titan lord of the wilderness.
Xx Somewhere in the Forest, near the city of Cadme…xX
Arsylvos sighed heavily. It has been several decades now that Drycha quitted the nest. Things had been very… entertaining, for the lack of better term.
The whole Persephone affair had been a hard one to deal with, it took the efforts of Hecate, Helios and himself to find her in the underworld. Of course, the goddess of harvest tried to take back her daughter, but it was too late. Demeter maybe Persephone's mother, but even he could see that Hades genuinely loved Persephone, and vice versa. Plus, hades wasn't exactly poor or powerless, if you see what he meant.
Okay, sure, the abduction part was uncommon, but the result was know one of the most faithful and lovely godly couple, in his opinion.
It was quite the surprise when he discovered that Drycha was nearly as powerful as a minor goddess. Not exactly a goddess, but not too far. She was extraordinary powerful, her control over the trees and plants unseen even amongst the oldest satyrs. Of course, the titan ignored if that trait was common amongst his children, as Drycha was currently the only one.
During the years he had thought at others ways to give birth. He hasn't exactly experimented, but he had seriously thought about it, and Drycha really wanted younger siblings.
But deep inside, he was also worried. Zeus didn't take Drycha's existence very well. The idea of a powerful child of a titan scared him, even thought this child's father was his own brother. Arsylvos didn't understand his brother's paranoia. One thing was clear: he didn't inherited his brain from mother Rhea.
Rhea.
His mother was another sore subject. Not long after Zeus married Hera, Zeus announced that all titans, with the exception of Arsylvos himself, were banned from Olympus. Again, his paranoia took the better of him, and without a regret, he banned his own mother. The little ingrate had even had the nerve to affirm that he did it in order to avoid 'any titan attack'. As if mother Rhea had any ill intention toward her children to begin with. For gods' sake, she betrayed Kronos and saved Zeus when he couldn't do anything but drool on her nipple. For crying out lout! She even helped him, the only titan child she ever had, and planned with him the fall of the lord of the Time.
He tried to visit her, but it wasn't easy. She often changed of location and knew very well how to hide.
Rustle, rustle.
Noises gained his attention. It came from a nearby tree. Deciding to investigate, he pecked a look into it… only to discover a dying fox cub. The little thing was so young and small it couldn't be more than a handful weeks.
The cub had multiple laceration on him and was bleeding. Must has been attacked by an eagle.
That saddened Arsylvos. He has always loved foxes. He took the dying animal in his hand and tried to heal him with his natural energy. But nothing seemed to work. And the cub was dying. Frowning, Arsylvos did the first thing passing trough his head: he cut himself and let the golden blood flown on the cub.
Soon light engulfed the cub and his form shifted, becoming more human-like. And when the light died down, the cub in his arms disappeared, letting the place to a baby girl with messy red hair, two cute fox ears and a fluffy fox tail sprouting of her tail bone. The baby opened her eyes, revealing black sclera and adorable greyish-blue eyes.
The little one yipped and squirmed, trying to climb into the chest of Arsylvos, who looked so happy that his smile couldn't get any wider.
An animal (at least a dying one.) could be saved by his blood. And by the look of it, he also became a father for the second time.
Walking back to his camp, he noticed that something was wrong in the air. The sky was dark. The earth was shaken by a loud rumble. The rumble sounded like a distant cry of anger. Something was happening and he didn't liked it.
Just as he prepared himself to look for some milk and clothing for his new daughter, a very familiar energy emerged near him.
Hestia.
Of all his godly siblings, Hestia had always been special to him, and it became even truer since she helped him raising Drycha and gave her a natural resistance to fire.
"Brother Arsylvos." Greeted Hestia. "I am here to… who is that?" She pointed the baby in his arms.
Arsylvos smiled, oblivious to the concerned face his sister had. "My new daughter, she was just born minutes ago! Isn't she cute?"
Hestia's face softened a bit, before regaining a panicking tone.
"Brother, your daughter Drycha is in great danger! Zeus is about to judge her for treason!"
Arsylvos blinked.
"…what?" The cold rage in his voice sent shivers down Hestia's spine.
"Prometheus, brother… Prometheus had defied Zeus. He gave the fire to the mortals. He used a plant he asked Drycha to create. The poor dear ignored what Prometheus was up to. She need you, as a titan and our brother, you can escape some of Zeus' laws but…"
suddenly fissured, the wind roared, the animals howled. The whole Forest was booming in anger.
"Hestia…take my daughter for a moment will you." Arsylvos struggled to not howl and to keep a calm voice in front of his child and his sister.
Hestia nodded, and gently took the baby fox girl in her arms. Arsylvos began to walk away, when he turned and said "While I am away, could you find her a name? I'm not very good at it." Hestia smiled softly and nodded once more.
Arsylvos disappeared in flash.
The baby squirmed and played with her aunt's hair, yipping and mewing, her fluffy tail waving happily. Hestia sighed. Her daddy was very angry, and she pitied Zeus right now.
Arsylvos appeared just in front of he gates of Olympus. His eyes turned red and glowed, flames flickering around his sclera. His feature began to become more feral.
In an explosion of pure rage and godly energy, the lord of the Forest blew the gates away.
"ZEUUUUUUUUUUUUS!"
Xx Minutes ago, in the throne room. xX
Drycha, daughter of the lord of the Forest, lied kneeling in the floor, chained and powerless. She had grown in beauty: her once messy hair was tied in a high ponytail and bangs framed the sides of face, but without hiding her pointed ears. Her eyes were the deepest oceans blue, and her whole form was soft and well proportioned.
Number of satyrs, mortals and even Zeus himself had tried to seduce her numerous times, but each time she managed to sent them away.
Her crime? Being used, unknown to her, by a titan in his plan to defy the lord of the sky, and being herself the daughter of a titan.
Drycha glared fiercely at Zeus. The airhead never trusted her father, or any titan for that matter. He was going to blame her for the hell of it, and it would not surprise her if he decided to do something against the mortals after that, despite the fact that they were perfectly innocents.
"Dryad Drycha, daughter of the titan Arsylvos, for your participation in Prometheus' treachery, you will be condemned to share his fate. You will be chained to the Caucasian mountains and have your kidneys and matrices constantly devoured. Has the convict some last words to share?" gloated Zeus' voice. Drycha spat, the bastard was more than happy to condemned the woman who dared to refuse his assaults.
"Go to Tartarus!" She cried, only to be backhanded by the lord of the sky.
"Know your place, dryad. Cyclops, take her away."
And as the one-eyed giants took her, she began to trash and shout "Don't touch me! Leave me alone, leave me ALONE!" She shut her eyes in despair and wailed "Father!"
Everything happened in less than a second. The wind blew furiously, the palace shook, and a malicious presence made the minor deities flee in panic. The nature itself seemed to howl in anger.
"ZEUUUUUUUUUUUUS!"
A loud detonation was heard, and cracks began to form on the walls by the sheer pressure. By the time the lord of the Forest arrived in the throne room, only the Olympians remained there. Even the Cyclops collapsed, unconscious, leaving Drycha without restrain.
Arsylvos was furious. Nah, scratch that, he was livid. He knew that Zeus didn't trusted him and could be unfair and cruel, but that crossed the line.
He. dared. to. hit. HIS. CHILD!
He walked straight at him, decided to violently bash some senses in his thick head.
The king of the sky, regaining his bearing after his initial shock, snarled and pointed his master bolt to Arsylvos.
"What are you doing on Olympus, titan!?"
Arsylvos narrowed his blazing eyes, his anger was growing more and more.
"You perfectly know why I am here, you miserable ungrateful worm of a brother." Growled the titan son of Rhea "Release my daughter at once! "This time, the tremor that shook the palace began to seriously worry the others gods. Demeter was the first to act. She created vines and roots to keep her titan brother still. But her attempt failed as the plant shrink back as if they deadly afraid of him.
Zeus began to shout even louder. "How dare you ordering me! I am the king of Olympus, my authority is absolute!"
His brother laughed. "Your authority? You are so arrogant that you actually think that you can easily order me around?"
His feature became even more feral. "I am the lord of the forest, the king of the wild! Every dryads, satyrs, wild animals and life forms of the Forest are MY subjects, not yours!"
Zeus growled once more, but this time, Poseidon decided to step in. "He is right, brother. The forest and it's inhabitants are Arsylvos' domain."
"That dryad defied the authority of the gods of Olympus, she must be punished!"
"Punished? For what exactly?" Laughed Arsylvos "For being used, without her knowing? For being the daughter of your brother, who happen to be your eldest brother?" At that point, Zeus's face was red from anger.
"Or..." Whispered Arsylvos in his brother's ear "...Because she refused herself to you?"
Silence. Utter silence met that statement, except for the cracks of lightning emitted by Zeus' bolt. The king of the Zeus was shaking in fury at this point.
"Face it Little brother. You have no power over my daughter. I am her king, and I am her father." stated the lord of the Forest in a chilling voice. "I am the one who will judge her. Not you, Zeus."
Zeus was about to say something, but Athena beat him on the stake. "Actually, Arsylvos has a point here, father. It's up to the lord of the dryad's domain to judge her, it's the ancient law, and we are bound to obey it." Arsylvos allowed himself a smirk. Zeus: 0 Arsylvos:1
"Well, if everything is settled now, should I announce my daughter's sentence?" He said with a mischievous grin, eyeing Drycha with a glance that said everything gonna be alright. "while I don't give shit about the whole matter..." Several gods dead-panned at that point. "...As the lord of the Forest, I use my absolute authority as a king and a father and yaddah yaddah, and decided of your sentence." He said as if without a care in the world, with began to really disturb the others gods.
"...Drycha, your punishment is immortality. You will attend to the Forest by my side for eternity. Such is your punishment." Arsylvos said with a solemn tone of voice.
Xx A few hours later, back to Arsylvos' camp. xX
"Bwahahaha, you should have see their faces, it was so priceless!" Arsylvos laughed warmly. Hestia herself couldn't help but giggled. Behind them, Drycha was currently holding her newborn sister Vulpa on her laps. The little fox girl was squealing in laughters because of her big sister tickles.
"So..." Began Hestia "What do you plan to do now? Brother Zeus certainly want your head now. It would be best if you stayed in low profile for a while."
"In all honesty, I'm tired to be involved in godly affairs. I plan to give Drycha and Vulpa a happy life with a lot of siblings. I'll disappear for a century or two." Hestia smiled at her brother. "You care so much about your family. And people wonder why I consider you my favourite brother."
Arsylvos chuckled, making the best trollface he could "Is my favourite little sister making a move on me?" He teased. Hestia blushed a playfully punched his arm.
"Meanie. You know I don't meant it like it."
Arsylvos laughed "Of course."
Xx Another bunch of years later. XX
Arsylvos wandered his domain, pride evident in his face. The forest was so healthy here. He could sense a lot of natural energy. Dryads and satyrs there and there. The dryads respected him, calling him their 'father'. Many of them were his daughters, some were Drycha's, the others worshipped him as their lord. The satyrs, however were wary of him and tended to avoid him. Arsylvos guessed that it was because of his titan nature. Vulpa was another story: the lord of the Forest soon discovered that his foxy daughter was in fact a brand new kind of monster. Her and her numerous daughters were the cadmean foxes: humanoid creatures with the physical appearance of young teenagers, able to turn into fox the height of a lion. But fortunately for the demigods his siblings sired left and right, they were rather pacifists. Some of them liked to tend the camp built for the half-blood. Vulpa herself was a ball of fire. Excitable, goofy, and with a case of AHDH far worst than a demi-god. Thanks god she wasn't dyslexic. Well, yes, Arsylvos was really proud of his kingdom. He was a king with a vast domain, a numerous descent and tons of subjects.
But he was a king without a queen.
The curse of his father prevented him to have a child with a woman, that was true, but it wasn't the reason of his celibacy. He could make a woman pregnant using others means. Which was a drag, by the way *cough, cough* He just couldn't give birth to a demi-titan or a god.
...No, he just wasn't able to find a woman he was worthy for.
Thought he had the feeling that it was about to change, one day.
As he walked past a stream, he noticed a little figure wandering in the woods. Curious, he decided to check.
Beauty. It was the only word that could describe the child. Her auburn hair, her fair skin, her silver eyes. She was wearing a cute little white chiton and her hair were flowing freely on her shoulders. She was bare footed on the fresh grass. By the look of her frame, she must be something like 5 or 6 years old.
The child was quietly humming to herself. Her whole being seemed to flown in the natural energy of the Forest. Her energy was very familiar, it smelled a little like the sky...
...Gods Zeus really can't keep it in his pants. He felt bad for Hera, sometimes. He could actually pity her if she wasn't the so unfair and monstrous toward Zeus' conquests and children. They were innocents, only Zeus should be blamed. The lord of the Forest was about to continue his mental rant when...
"Who are you? I know you're here."
Arsylvos startled in surprise. So, his theory was indeed true. The little one was a young goddess.
Deciding to make his presence know, Arsylvos emerged from the shadows of the Forest.
Xx
Young Artemis eyed curiously the tall man emerging from the shadows of the Forest. He was certainly tallest than her own father, his blond hair reminded her of the mane of a lion, his whiskers marks strengthening that effect and his huge fur coat gave him an air of royalty. And his eyes... They were the eyes of a king.
The man stopped in front of her, his gaze on her.
"Who are you?" she asked again.
The giant of a man seemed amused. "Isn't it polite to introduce yourself first, little one?"
The child puffed her cheeks in annoyance. "I am Artemis. And I'm not little, I'm two years old!" She exclaimed, putting her hands on her tiny hips, something Arsylvos found amusing and adorable at the same time.
"A child, in my eyes and the eyes of many others, little one." He chuckled, much to her ire. "Well, little Artemis, do you know who I am?" He asked. Artemis shook her head. She had never seen that huge man before.
"I am the king of the Forest, my name is Arsylvos. And I am your uncle, little one."
Artemis' silvery eyes widened. "Are you a god, mister Arsylvos?"
"Please little one, call me uncle." Laughed the titan.
"I'll call you uncle when you stop calling me 'little one'" She said with defiance.
"And I'll stop calling you 'little one' when you'll stop being one." He said, making the troll-face. He laughed harder at her look of childish annoyance. "And to answer your question, I am a titan, not a god."
Artemis then lost any look of annoyance on her face, instead gaining one of amazement and awe.
"You are like my mother..." she said, making the lord of the Forest raise an eyebrow at her.
"Who is your mother, niece?"
"Leto."
Arsylvos nodded. He knew Leto and rather liked her as a peaceful being.
"But mister Arsylvos" she asked, ignoring the amused look on her uncle face. "How can you be a titan, and yet being my father's brother?"
Arsylvos hummed to himself. "Do you like stories, little one?" He asked.
She nodded eagerly, and then sat in the grass, a look of excitement in her beautiful eyes.
'By the gods, she's just like Drycha and Vulpa.' Mused the titan. Vulpa was just as easily excitable than her, and Drycha just as prideful, in this cute childish manner.
Smiling, the lord of the Forest sat, he began to recite his tale to his niece.
"It was a long time ago, long before the birth of the mighty Olympians..."
And cut. I would like to thanks the ones who support my story, and I wish you a Happy Halloween. The lord of the forest is a story imagined by me. The universes of Naruto and PJO belongs to their super authors.
Next chapter, Arachne, Artemis' lessons, the giants and the wrath of the Forest.