Phase 3: Negotiate and Surveillance
"I can't believe that boy. Always have to go and start a fight. And can't listen to a simple order."
Hera rubbed her temples from her husband's rants. "I think Eris is working overtime for this," she muttered before grabbing his shoulders. "Zeus, he's just impulsive. He'll—"
"Impulsive?! That's an understatement. He wants nothing more than to cause death and destruction. He has never taken any real responsibility.
"Well maybe if you give him the chance to be responsible then maybe he'll reconsider."
"Ares, dear," the drawled voice of Aphrodite made the god of war perk up in his chair. His mistress sauntered into his temple in an elegant black dress and flipped her hair flirtatiously. His hounds bounded off to her.
"You better be here for fun, woman, and not about what happened at the meeting," he said, lounging back into his chair of human skin.
"I'm always looking for fun, my love," she said. She sat on his lap and took off his sunglasses. Red flames shone from his eye sockets. "However," the goddess of love continued, "I must admit. That whole debacle in the council was quite nasty."
He grabbed the hand that was stroking his jawline. The flames burned hotter. "I want nothing to do with that."
"But why? What makes letting mortals on a little planet get you so bothered?" He turned away with a growl. Aphrodite gently turned his face back to hers. "Tell me."
Ares's head was suddenly swimming. "It's my planet," he said quietly.
She looked at him funny. "So you choose to leave it barren instead of letting worshipers make use of it to praise you more?"
"It's not like that. Mars is cursed," he admitted. Aphrodite cocked her head. "When Gaea and the other primordial gods emerged from Chaos, others like her were formed. Gaea was the only one who made it out of infancy. That's what the mortals call the planets."
The goddess leaned back. "So the planets are dead primordial embryos floating in space? My Venus is a dead goddess? How do you know this?"
"After the Romans discovered it and named it after me, I went to check it out and I saw what remained of the fetus."
"That is so sad." She covered her mouth. "Poor miscarried babies out there in the cold." Tears started to pool up in her eyes but did not distort her beauty. A thoughtful expression passed over her stunning face. "Is that why you won't give your permission to use it? Will it not work?"
"I don't know."
"But maybe we could fix that."
He turned back to face her.
"We are gods after all. We can do the impossible." She smiled pridefully.
"Then what?" Ares countered. "Let Zeus rule over my property again?"
Her face fell for a moment, then an idea came to her. "Most mortals who do worship us think we're myths. If they live on Mars, they will be praising the name of the god of war. Future generations will pray your name for when they call it home." Another idea popped into her head. "And if Mars becomes its own nation—or nations—conflict is bound to happen. And what if it's between both Earth and Mars."
Ambition burned in his eyes. "An interstellar war. One that never happened before."
"And imagine the romance that could come from this. Real star-crossed lovers. Long distanced? Separated by war? The first couple to produce the first Martian? Oh, the endless possibilities."
"I'll do it!" Ares bolted out of his chair. Aphrodite gracefully floated to her feet from his outburst.
The twelve returned to the council chamber, minus Hades who returned to his realm. After Ares had begrudgingly gone to his father to give his endorsement of his plans, Zeus messaged the whole pantheon to reassemble so they could get started on the project.
Zeus cracked his knuckles, making a loud crack. "All right. To start this venture, we will need to wake Mars. Athena, any insights?
Athena spoke up. "For a planet to harbor life, it needs to live itself. Mars is the fetus of a primordial god. She will need a tremendous amount of power to start her heart. We will need to collect a small amount of Chaos's essence to give that jolt of life. But it will need a great force to kickstart it."
How do you suppose we do that?
"I will awaken her," Ares said. "As her namesake, I have to give the name full to her and give my blessing."
Hera suddenly had a revelation. "That makes me wonder. If we awaken this primordial goddess, would we need to change her features for her? Or could we do it ourselves?" A dreadful thought came to her. "And how could we rule over her if we awaken her? We do not rule over Gaea. Not out of spite, but because no one should for the sake of our grandmother. Would Mars allow us to rule over her?"
"We would rule our respective domains of her, my Lady," Zeus said. "You, me, and Apollo with take the heavens, Poseidon will govern the seas, Hades the Underworld, and the rest will go as they will as usual."
"But, Lord Father, there is one more issue," Athena interrupted. "This second world will have an Underworld of its own, the same as its own heaven and sea. You and Poseidon will have dominion over those, but who will control chthonic Mars? And the Underworld affects the planet's core. If Hades doesn't join our enterprise, who knows what negative effects will become of Mars and the mortals?"
The scowl of Zeus was a terrible sight. Some of his children silently sank into their seats.
"He will never agree. He still resents me for giving him the Underworld—our Underworld."
Hermes spoke up. "My Lord. Send me to Hades to make the arrangements. I'm sure we could spark up an agreement that will benefit all of us."
Zeus thoughtfully stroked his beard before nodding his head.
"My lord," one of the furies announced from entering the throne room. "Lord Hermes is here beating an important message."
Hades grumbled. Persephone gave him a sorrowful look. He has so few opportunities to spend time with his queen. "Send him in," he said, leaning back on his throne.
The winged-shoed god, bearing his caduceus and wearing that winged hubcap, raised in. His godly glow was a sharp contrast to the dark gloom of the Underworld palace.
"Lord and Uncle Hades! King of the Underworld, Watcher of the Dead—"
"Get on with the message!" the elder god interrupted. "No doubt it's from my brother."
Hermes tentatively pulled out a scroll and read it. "Lord Zeus and the whole of the Council of Olympus wish to extend an olive branch with a generous offer. Upon the gods' venture to terraform the planet Mars, they need someone to take domain over the world's Underworld to complete the transformation. They, by order of King Zeus, have requests for you—"
"I will not invest in this science fiction project of theirs," Hades denied.
Hermes lowered the scroll. "You don't understand, Hades. There are interests in it for you."
Hades sighed exasperatedly. He pinched the bridge of his nose while saying, "Fine. What is it?"
"If you take dominion over the Martian Underworld, not only will you help terraform the planet, but you will also have possession of all the riches under the surface."
Slowly he lowered his hand and peered over it. That may have seemed to have piqued his interest. "That's been promised to me before and now look at me now," he fired back. He gripped the arms of his throne. "And why would Zeus suddenly offer me a whole world of unclaimed riches? He could take it for himself. There must be a catch."
The message god gasped at him. "Uncle, I know his this looks and your relationship with your brothers, but this is a good deal—and in fact," he quickly said before Hades could interrupt again, "I have a financial plan that could help you with this wealth and investment."
He began to lay out the plan he said about managing the new wealth and how running the Underworld between two planets could work.
After Hermes finished explaining, Hades said loudly, "Leave!" The disheveled messenger turned and exited the throne room.
Finally, every invasive being was gone. Persephone leaned over to her husband. "You have to admit, my love, it is a great opportunity," she whispered into his ear. "Imagine what we could do once the Underworld is up to scale."
Her husband sighed and rubbed his temple. "It's just going to go wrong. I know it. Zeus has to be the king of the universe while I wallow in darkness. The wretch!"
Persephone draped her arms around his shoulders. "How your brothers treated you was inexcusable. However, if anyone is the perfect ruler for the dead, it's you. And Zeus this time is offering you a better income. Maybe he wants to bury the hatchet."
He gave her a long, judgmental stare. "Easy for you to say. You're his daughter."
His queen's face morphed into a furious scowl. The ground shook and flowers and thorny plants erupted from the growing cracks. Still, he did not flinch. After a handful of moments, the plants died away with Persephone's rage. She pushed her hair back to compose herself and folded her hands on her lap.
"Forgive me, husband," she said. "I only wish the best for you and our domain. And if it means forming a new, less hostile tie with Zeus, then I believe it is for a greater good. You don't have to repair your relationship with him. You don't even have to like him, but you can get something out of this deal. Please, just think about it."
That was why he chose to marry her. She brightened life in the Underworld.
A/N: Please leave a review. I've been working on another Percy Jackson fanfiction that is quite different from this. For those who like romance, you might find it interesting. But I want to finish this first because it shouldn't be too long. And there's some foreshadowing that may shock you. So get ready.