The Olympian God of Destruction:
Chapter 8: The Titanomachy I
Atop Mount Othrys…
"Lord Kronos, sir…" Atlas began, kneeling before the leader of the Titans, as he sat upon his throne in his personal throne room.
The Titan Lord's wound left behind by Beerus had closed up a while ago, as had his tunic, making it appear as though he'd never been genuinely hurt in the slightest. His face itself was like stone, showing no outward emotion.
It was his eyes however, as Atlas gazed up at the universe's ruler, that made it blatantly clear what his true emotions were at the current juncture. His dark brown eyes set into a cold, vicious glare that spoke volumes about how livid he truly was at present.
"Report." Kronos's gravelly voice spoke, uttering just a single word as he leaned over his throne, his hands gripping against the magically enforced armrests of what had once been his own father's seat he'd used while overseeing the entire world. His tone sounding so icy and chilling even to Atlas, his own ally, that it felt like time itself had frozen over then and there, despite Kronos having not yet willed it so.
Atlas simply nodded and got to it, not wanting his leader in his current mood to feel like he was wasting his time. "The damage left to the fortress by the new god who we've now come to know as Beerus-"
"My son." Kronos cut him off briefly. Those two words alone filled with nothing but barely contained venom, as his eyes narrowed like slits. The air – no, the very space and time – around him rippling and distorting with his bubbling contempt and rage.
"Your son." The broadly built Titan acknowledged, to his credit, without so much as even the tiniest stutter seeing how much just mentioning the purple-haired deity got under the king's divine skin. "The damage he dealt to our fortress has been fixed up for a start, though I must report, it took longer than it should've."
"Yes…" Kronos hissed, nursing his midsection where his bastard child had bust out, freeing himself and the rest of his damn spawn in the process. "I'd already caught on to that when it took far longer than it should've for the hole he punched in my gut to heal up."
Atlas's features only winced minorly at being given such a reminder, recalling himself how his lord's son had embarrassed him too. "Yes well, while we're on that, my lord, it would seem that word of what occurred earlier has travelled throughout Mount Othrys."
"Hardly surprising, seeing as my bastard son chose to smash his way out of our domain and damage the mountain itself." Kronos would've been shocked if there was even one being, whether in this domain or close by that hadn't either felt, heard or saw a section of the castle and the massive mountain shattering and falling down to the earth below. "Something like that is impossible to miss, and I wouldn't doubt those nymphs that ran off also spilled the beans on such an embarrassment."
"You're not wrong on that. I spoke with Hyperion before I arrived here, and it seems as though his wife Theia, and most likely the other Titanesses that dwell here have been made acutely aware of what happened. Won't be much longer now for it to travel beyond this domain, what with all the ruckus the news is causing, if it's not in the process of doing so already. Have you spoken to Rhea since, my king?"
Kronos's eyes narrowed as his expression darkened, and Atlas immediately got the sense that something had gone wrong. "No, but if her lack of presence in my castle, and anywhere near Mount Othrys is anything to go by, I'm sure she's well aware as well."
"Wait, the queen is gone?" Atlas asked, seeing the calculating, and if he could be frank, downright paranoid look that his leader's eyes held on the subject of Rhea.
"Yes. And given the convenience of her absence coming on the same day that an escape of our children took place, a part of me suspects she knew something like this would occur."
"How so, my lord? Not that I doubt your word, but-"
"Atlas." Kronos cut off his second-in-command, levelling him with a cold, pondering stare. "Tell me, do you recall the amount of my kin that came out of me earlier?"
"The amount?" Atlas blinked in confusion, not sure where his leader was going with this. Still, he knew better than to question his ruler's train of thought and gave that a quick moment to ponder before replying. "If I recall… there was about six of them, including that bastard Beerus. Why do you ask?"
"I didn't pay much mind to it at the time, on account of all the drama that my son caused for us, but looking back now, I've come to realize that of all the children of mine that came out when that unruly son of mine punched my stomach open, there was one that was suspiciously absent from the lot. The seventh and most recent child Rhea bore for me was nowhere to be seen in the group of my spawn that escaped me."
Atlas remained silent, as he ruminated on the implications of such a thing being the case. He of course had been told of the cursed prophecy that his grandfather Ouranos had handed down to Kronos by his own father a while back, and also knew this to be the reason why he got rid of any children he sired with Rhea. If one had been missing, as his king had said, that could only mean…
"I see you're realizing the true issue at hand there." Kronos noted, seeing the dawning look of comprehension on the musclebound Titan's features. "It would appear that whatever Rhea handed me the day our latest child was bore, it certainly wasn't the new-born." His eyes flashed with anger at that. "And adding to that, do you recall the 'gift' that that so-called son of my eldest brother, the one called Zeus, supposedly handed up on his behalf as an apology?"
Atlas nodded slowly. "The potion. What about it?"
Kronos chuckled darkly, though there wasn't even a shred of humour in his voice. "Would you believe that a small bit of it still remained on my hand even after I crushed it?" The Titan Lord raised a hand near his face and turned his gaze towards it, almost boring a hole through it as though it'd been part of an awful joke. "Funny thing was, now that it was touching my skin, I could sense the magic that was put into it. Hmph! To think, that cheeky little shit had the gall to call it a taste enhancer."
Atlas didn't even have to ask to know just by the sound of Kronos's tone that what Zeus had told him was a lie.
Kronos continued, only this time with the very space around them beginning to ripple and bend with his growing fury. "If he hadn't chosen that moment to blast my gut open, and I'd been foolish enough to put this in my drink, that 'taste enhancer' would've had me puking and retching my guts out."
Atlas's eyes widened slightly. "But wouldn't that mean…"
"Yes, Atlas. In other words, it would seem as though my spawn were destined to come out of me today one way or another." Oh, the convenience of it all. One child missing from the group that got out of his innards, and then some young god who he'd never seen before shows up with a daughter of Oceanus, claiming to be his son, on the very day that his wife coincidentally leaves without a word, and gives him a potion potent enough to have him puke out his offspring, had his purple-haired progeny not somehow made his way out the hard way?
It would appear I allowed myself to be conned by you, Rhea. I should've been paying more attention that day you handed me whatever was wrapped in that blanket. Not that it would've mattered, seeing as his eldest son would've punctured a hole in him regardless, but it was the intent that counted. I should've known you wouldn't let what I was doing go, and even more so that how you've been recently, showering me with all that affection and sex, it was all just an act, wasn't it? Despite my caution, I grew too complacent around you, it seems. That would be something he'd have to rectify eventually, preferably when he'd dealt with his escaped children first. Zeus included it seemed, and Beerus especially.
Seated on what was once his father's throne, he not only could cast his gaze from the heavens down to the infinite expanse of the world below, but could also feel more than ever the way the sky itself rumbled at him following Beerus's vow and his children's escape.
It would seem that Ouranos, even in his formless state, was laughing at him right now. No doubt enjoying seeing every second of his predicament, with his curse on him baring fruit and relishing in what he saw as karma finally being served to the son who'd felled him all those years ago. Just as he'd foretold.
Despite his best attempts, he felt the inkling of fear in the back of his head, that no matter what he did, he was doomed to fall at this point. Doomed to be overthrown by his eldest son and the rest of his children, the very thing he'd tried so hard to avoid. Such a thought, as it'd done before, brought terror clenching at his very being. All before he crushed that feeling with impunity.
Damnit all, there wasn't a chance in Tartarus he was going to allow his damned father's accursed prophecy to come true! There wasn't a doubt in his mind that his blasted father's curse was referring to his eldest son now. Not after the way he'd made an impact like that at his expense before his Titan brethren. He'd be sure to deal with him personally, and then cast the rest of his scions into the deepest, darkest pit of Tartarus. Right beside his revolting 'brothers' the Cyclopes and Hekatonchires.
Afterwards, he'd deal with his treacherous wife last.
Summoning his scythe to his side, and gripping it harshly in his hand, Kronos's eyes glowed a mixture of red and gold as everything around him warped. The very fabric of reality seeming to become unwound all around where he sat, just from the sliver of power he released. His next words coming out in a controlled, but commanding tone, as every word seemed to cause distortions and boom through the tides of time itself. "Atlas, be sure our brethren are prepared, for this slight shall not go unchallenged! My son Beerus, in his arrogance, vowed to not only destroy me, but have you all grovelling at his feet like dogs. I will not allow that to happen!"
"Nor will I, or our fellow Titans, my lord." The musclebound Titan spoke up with conviction. His own eyes beginning to glow a pale, milky-white as his leader continued. "We are at your command, my lord."
"Naturally, because if it's my destruction he seeks, then that foolhardy son of mine has as good as declared war on us all. And if it's a war he wants," Kronos rose from his throne, his entire form beginning to glow the same reddish-golden aura his eyes did, as he slammed the butt of his trusted weapon upon the floor, creating a tremor that was felt across all of Mount Othrys and beyond. "then it's a war he'll get!"
Back on the isle of Crete… The very next day…
Beerus let out a contented yawn as he rose off his bed in the early morning still dressed in his tunic. A feeling of heightened gratification bubbling through him as he stood up and stretched his arms out within his room before scratching the back of his head with a pleased smile on his face. His room, despite having no light source within, managing to remain visible and reasonably well-lit seemingly without any form of logic behind it.
Now that was something I needed. Short as it was, that had to be one of the best naps I've ever had… The former G.O.D of Universe 7 thought pleasantly, not even feeling an ounce of the grumpiness he'd have felt after slumbering back in his old universe, as he made his way towards the doorway in front of his bed that had a weirdly glowing yellowish field that surrounded the empty space where a door would've normally gone.
Following after their reunion, where their mother had had plenty of time to catch up with them after recovering from the surprise of what he'd told her, she'd decided to make the cave, their temporary form of residence, a good deal more hospitable. She'd done this by creating individual rooms for each and every one of them, including herself, within the vast mountain cave, with the exception of Zeus and Metis, who'd shared theirs, to act as their bedchambers. Each one having a bed of course that had been formed from the ground, and then imbued with but the tiniest sliver of her divine magic to form a comfy mattress atop them for each of her children to rest on, with even some pillows to go along with them.
This of course, was mostly for the benefit of her children that had been stuck inside of their so called father's stomach up to now, as although none of them actually required sleep, Rhea wanted them to get some proper rest for the days ahead. After having to stew in their father's acidic fluids for pretty much their entire lives up to now, she'd saw it as the least she could do to start making it up to them for allowing what she'd referred to as 'her precious babies' to deal with such a revolting existence for that long, even if none of them, not even Beerus himself at that point, put any of the blame on her for that. The cave rooms, and by extension now the rest of the cave, also becoming decently lit-up compared to before, with a unique, almost homely feel, due to Rhea's influence.
The walls of the cave were also especially thick with divine magic coursing through them, and according to Rhea, this meant that any sounds coming from within any of the rooms would not travel out. Something about in case they felt they needed to vent or something but didn't want to disturb the others, they could just do it in their rooms. Additionally, while the doorways held no actual doors, the intriguing yellowish field that covered it entirely made it impossible to see inside or out of the room depending on where you were, unless you went through it.
Naturally, Beerus had more than appreciated the gesture, especially when he'd first laid himself down on his own bed last night and felt the stark difference between floating in disgusting stomach fluids all this time, to now laying on what had to be the plushest and comfiest bed he'd ever been on. He wasn't exaggerating on that either. Even the best pillows combined with his own personal bed that had been made with the finest materials from Universe 7 back in the day weren't as cosy as the one Rhea managed to gift him with the greatest of ease.
Beerus was a rather simple god at heart, who took great pleasure in the simpler things in life, like good, delicious food and a nice place to take a nap. Despite his loss of any cat-like features, that didn't mean he'd lost his liking for things he'd loved prior to his rebirth, and sufficed to say, his new mother's first official act to start making up for lost time and their unsavoury entrapment, was well-appreciated by him. Enough so to where the woman was already in his good books.
That being said, there was also the case of his other family member he'd been recently introduced to. His youngest brother, Zeus.
Leaving aside what had occurred yesterday in that castle, Zeus had shown to him after they got here that he was smart enough to avoid stepping on Beerus's toes. Additionally, Rhea had chosen upon seeing his hesitance to get him more involved with the rest of them, due to not wanting to leave any of her children out of what she saw as much needed bonding time.
If Beerus was being honest, given his first impression of the guy, alongside him attempting to inject himself into his business with Hera, Beerus had had the feeling that he was going to end up being quite the annoyance. Perhaps not as much as Hera had been while they were stuck in Kronos's stomach, but more than enough to make him almost insufferable to deal with. The former G.O.D had to admit though, when he did get more involved, at least for that day, Zeus hadn't been nearly as bad as he was expecting. Rather, he'd shown himself to be at the very least tolerable in Beerus's eyes. Zeus was still somewhat tense around him after he'd laid down the law, but he did end up relaxing around him quite a bit more upon realizing he wasn't going to bite his head off without reason. That and once Rhea had let him in on what her plan had actually been, He'd warmed up to him just a little bit. Once he was made aware that if he had somehow failed to break through the Titan king's gut that they would've been freed from there regardless due to Zeus being able to fool him into accepting a potion that would've made him vomit them out, he felt he could at least give his youngest sibling a chance to get more on his good side.
Well, so long as he made sure to remember his warning of course. If he continued to do that, he could see the two of them getting along reasonably well.
Yesterday and night overall had been pretty nice, all things considered. About the only thing that would've made it better was if he'd been able to get his complete vengeance upon Kronos just before arriving in this place.
That, however, was something he intended to fix soon enough.
Right as he walked through the yellowish field covering his doorway and stepped into the cave's tunnel that connected throughout the entire mountain, his amber eyes fell immediately on a sight he neither needed, nor wanted.
"Oh, Beerus." Zeus grinned in a more relaxed manner than he'd seen before, as both he and Metis stepped out of their room together right in front of him, as their room sat opposite of his own. "Did you have a good rest brother?" The silver-haired deity asked in a far less tense tone then he'd had with him before, though he could still hear a tinge of nervousness, as he distractedly chose to nuzzle his face in the crook of his lover's neck in a teasing manner, whilst circling an arm around her waist to bring her closer, which garnered a soft moan from the Oceanid. Something that was probably done to not only stop himself from getting more anxious as much as it was him wanting to enjoy himself more than he already had. A fact that wouldn't have been bad and the elder brother wouldn't have minded or cared about, had it not been for them both being stark naked. "Because I certainly know I did."
"Unh… You're insatiable, you know that?" Metis remarked amusedly, her hair a total mess and her legs quivering beneath, before she saw the look on Beerus's face. It didn't take her even half a second to notice how her lover's elder brother cringed at them. Something that made her switch gears quickly, as she decided to end their antics for the moment. "I think that's enough for now, Zeus. We had more than enough fun all last night, and I get the feeling your brother isn't too keen on seeing us be intimate like this in front of him."
Oh gee, whatever gave her that idea?
"Ah, you're right." Zeus agreed, looking over to see his brother's less-than-enthused expression, the man's face scrunched up badly as though he'd just tasted something unbelievably sour, as he averted his gaze. The long silver-haired god's member protruding right out from between his consort's shapely legs, as he leaned back in to give her a kiss on the cheek. "How inconsiderate of us." He said, before unwrapping his arm from around her to let her go.
This got him a playful slap on his shoulder from her. Her ample, modestly large D-cup breasts jiggling and swaying with erect, bright red nipples grazing through the cool air that travelled through the cave as she stepped out and away from his half-erect manhood. Zeus had to resist the urge to not cop a feel of her plump ass as she did, watching it give a nice, light wobble as though her butt-cheeks were made of jelly.
"Inconsiderate of you, you mean." She snipped back with a bemused grin, as her body lit up for a split second, before dissipating back to reveal she was now covered in her standard tunic. "You're the one all too excited to go further on with those hands and package of yours." She continued, as she started to make her way down the tunnel.
"Don't go acting as though you're wholly innocent dear, especially not with how much you were begging me for more mere hours ago." Zeus called back cheekily, his nervousness around his brother forgotten momentarily as he took his eyes off of Beerus for a brief instant, his body glowing the same way hers had done, before dissipating to reveal him dressed back up in his own tunic.
"I'm not going to even deign that with a proper response." She said without looking back, partially because she couldn't think of anything to bite back with at the moment, and partially because he had her there. Not that she was about to admit as such openly. "I'll see you both in a bit. I'm just going to check on the others." With that, the second-generation Titaness took her leave further down the tunnelway, and out of the two male deities immediate sight.
"So, uhh… is there a problem, brother?" Zeus asked, his tone slightly nervous despite his best efforts, yet at the same time remarkably innocent, as he turned his gaze back to the purple-haired god.
Beerus's head turned, mind thankful that his younger brother was now dressed, as his eyes practically bore a hole through his skull. Left brow twitching in disturbed agitation. "A problem, you ask?"
Was this asshat trying to take the piss out of him, or something?
"Oh, right…" Zeus winced seeing his brother's expression darken. "Sorry about just now, I guess. Was a little too excited after last night, I suppose." He commented in earnest, before splaying an arm out in the direction his consort had gone down. "Could you really blame me this time though, when it comes to her? Because, in my defence brother, last night especially she was quite the-"
"Stop." Beerus cut him off with a groan, pinching his eyes shut with his index finger and thumb. Not wanting to hear anymore about where Zeus was obviously going. "Just. Stop. I really don't care to learn about what you both do in the bedroom. You've already scarred me enough as it is." He was already rethinking what he'd thought not a minute ago, about giving the younger deity a chance.
"Uh, scarred you? Don't you think you're exaggerating just a little bit?" Zeus couldn't help but ask awkwardly, bringing down his raised arm back to his side.
"No." Beerus's hand came back down as his eyes opened and glared at his youngest sibling, enough to make a bead of nervous sweat drop from the silver-haired god's temple. "I was in a good mood after having a nice nap, and then you had to go and ruin it as soon as I stepped out." Ugh… It was going to take quite the amount of mental will power to bleach the abhorrent image of a certain part of the younger god's anatomy especially from his mind. "I couldn't care less what you two do with each other. Have at it. But would it have killed you to put your tunic on before you came out? Because I really didn't need to see that."
"Wait, your problem was with us – or me in specific – being nude?" Zeus blinked in mild surprise, and Beerus's annoyance grew at how that seemed to take him aback.
As to why it took him by surprise that the formerly feline deity wouldn't be keen on, or in this case was repulsed by seeing a family member, male especially, naked before his eyes at the ass-crack of morning, the ex-G.O.D didn't even want to bother entertaining.
"Yes, you moron." The elder of the two replied tersely. "And let me make this clear to you, just so we're on the same page. If I ever wake up from a nap and you strut out naked like that with you-know-what dangling at me again," Beerus proceeded to point below the electric-blue-eyed god's waist, before making a none-too-pleasant snipping motion with his fingers that was impossible to misconstrue. His amber pools promising a painful future if his words were not heeded. "I promise you you'll lose it pretty damn quick. Understand?"
"Crystal!" Zeus said back rather quickly, giving an overly affirmative, almost comical nod of his head as one hand subconsciously moved to shield his crotch. His complexion paling over as more beads of sweat trickled down his forehead in alarm over the threat of his manhood being removed. Especially since so far, the older brother had yet to bluff on anything he'd said.
"Good. Now if you'll excuse me," Beerus turned and started to make his way down the tunnelway opposite to where Metis had gone, where he knew would lead to the entrance. "I've got some vengeance to undertake."
"Huh? Vengeance?" It took a small moment for the purple-haired god's words to fully register in Zeus's head, but once they did, his eyes shot wide open. "Wait, hold on there, brother!" Zeus quickly called out as he quickly dashed in front of his brother. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, hang on there a minute!" Zeus spoke in an even more alarmed tone, pushing his hands out in front of him close to his brother's chest in a placating manner. An act that managed to get Beerus to halt for the moment. "You're not thinking of going after Kronos already, are you?"
Beerus rose a brow. "And why wouldn't I? I didn't make that proclamation to him and his merry band of buffoons before I punched a hole in his castle for the heck of it. I meant what I said, and I intend to do so as soon as possible."
"Does it have to be this soon, though? It's only been a day!"
"Yes, and? I helped get you all back here safe and sound, had that whole mushy reunion with our mother, and got to have a pleasant nap. Now with you all no longer in the crossfire, I'd say I'm more than ready to storm back up to whatever is left of that place and finish what I started."
"Brother, I mean no offence to you, really, I don't, but I must advise you against such an idea!"
"Duly noted." Beerus nodded, before grabbing a hold of his brother's highly muscled shoulder. "Now get out of the way." He added dismissively, as he easily wrenched him to the side and out of his way, almost pulling Zeus off his feet all together and forcing him to jitter on the flats of his feet just to maintain his balance.
"Hold on!" Not one to give up so easily, Zeus swiftly got his bearings back and moved to catch up once again, the two nearing the mountain cave's entrance already, seeing as both their rooms were near the top of the mountain and the closest to it. Once he did catch up, he grabbed a hold of his brother's shoulder to stop him once again, just as the rays of Helios began to shine through and on to his face. "I know you want to take down our father more than anyone else, Beerus, and I know we're not exactly on good terms, but please just listen to me. You going back up there right now on your lonesome, when they're no doubt on high alert right now after what happened isn't going to end well for you!"
"Oh?" Beerus tilted his head and eyed his bearded cohort with a sharp, closing in on dangerous gleam. "Are you doubting my power now?"
"N-No! Not at all!" Zeus quickly, and wisely, shook his head vehemently. "I witnessed first-hand what you were capable of. I would be a fool to do so."
"And yet you are getting in the way of me going back up to that mountain to pay that jackass 'father' of ours his just deserts. Care to explain?"
"I'm doing that because I feel you are being too hasty, brother. You may be strong, far more so right now than I am, but I promise you that won't be enough. Please, take heed and be a bit more patient. You did say whether it took days, weeks, months or years, you'd destroy Kronos, yes? Why not take a hint then and slow down for a bit? Perhaps stick around to help our siblings grow into their own powers, help them, and perhaps me as well, become more powerful. Maybe not as strong as you've somehow managed to get, but enough to where we can aid you in taking down Kronos and the Titans later?" Zeus finished with a hopeful tone, seeing a benefit in them all standing together as one against the Titans that'd no doubt be coming for them now, rather than letting their strongest and currently most reliable sibling go at it alone.
Beerus however, wasn't exactly on board. "Yeah, I'll pass." He waved him off, shirking his hand away from his shoulder, as he made to continue walking. "As tempting as that is, I'm not really the patient sort. When I want something, I prefer to go for it as fast as possible without delay, as I'm sure you're already well aware of after I smashed mine and the others way out of Kronos's stomach, rather than sitting put and waiting to be rescued like a helpless child." That and all the other times back in his previous life he'd gone out into the cosmos for a decent meal or what he thought might be a good fight. "I'd say I'm more than powerful enough to take on all six of those so-called Titans. In fact," Beerus smirked confidently as he looked forward while reaching a hand up to his neck and cracking it in a form of anticipation. "I'd welcome them to try and gang up on me. Should at least give me more of a challenge."
"Foolishness. You are exceptionally strong, but clearly too impetuous, young one."
"Huh?" Beerus's smirk fell, his expression becoming one of confusion at the voice that was most certainly not Zeus, or anyone he'd heard for that matter, rebuking him. A distinctly feminine one, but that was about all he could tell, as his head swivelled around in a fruitless search for its wielder. "Who said that?"
Zeus on the other hand, had gained a look of recognition. "Hold on, I know that voice…"
"I would certainly hope that you do, Zeus. Seeing as I helped raise you for the first two weeks of your life." The feminine voice spoke out again, this time with a small bit of humour.
Beerus's confusion only mounted. Where was this voice coming from? It couldn't be telepathic, because he couldn't feel a presence in his mind, and he couldn't see anyone around them. Furthermore, it sounded like her voice was coming from nearly all directions at once. Almost as if it was coming from…
"Below you, young one." The voice stated where his own thoughts had been going. "Though, since this is our first proper meeting, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to reveal myself to you in a form you're more accustomed to."
Just then, the very earth in front of Beerus and Zeus, right around the entrance, began to give way, as a very familiar being to Zeus began to briskly rise out of the rocky surface, just as she'd done with Rhea on the day of the latter's birth.
First came the hair, long flowing and the colour of purest soil, before the unmistakeable shape of a voluptuous humanoid female came with. Her form just as bare and covered in lusciously saturated, bright green moss across her chest, upper arms, slim waist, curvaceous hips and thicc thighs as the last time she'd shown herself like this. And the silver-haired male didn't doubt her ass was just as firm and round in this form as it'd been before. Her skin no less resplendent than the healthiest of roots within the earth, and her eyes blooming with a radiant green that rivalled the most flourishing greenery. The primordial goddess of the earth smiled maternally at the two brothers as her body completed its formation, accentuated with a pertinent bounce of her Large G-cup breasts. The sun's rays curiously framing her sublimely at all angles and punctuating her grandeur that much more, as they cast over and around her figure.
Zeus had to stop himself from gulping audibly and hide a certain traitorous part of his anatomy beneath his tunic, as Gaea revealed herself in all her splendour. Her face just as beautiful, and hourglass figure just as stacked and perfectly proportioned as they'd been the last time he'd seen this form of her. The mother of nature's supple, round mounds of flesh being perhaps the most eye-catching as the impossibly perky duo came to a rest from their prior bounce over the goddess's chest, with their brownish nipples, at least to him, jutting out just as proud and true as budding plants that grew from her more earthen body.
Beerus meanwhile, simply blinked at the sight of the naked beauty that was mother nature personified. Words failing him for a brief instant at the unexpectedness of an encounter like this. His own eyes ending up soaking in every inch of her appearance that he could see from time to bottom. Not necessarily out of any sort of physical attraction mind you, but a part of him would be lying if he said he didn't appreciate the much more appealing visage to help his mind forever burn the cringe-inducing image of the lower part of his younger brother's anatomy from his mind faster.
"There. Better, young one?" The primordial asked with a sliver of amusement at the owlish look she got from the elder of the two, as she propped a hand on one of her wide hips.
"Uhh… I guess?" Better was certainly one way to describe it. "And just who are you?"
"Oh, my apologies. How rude of me." She said with a hint of apology in her tone. "I am Gaea, young one. The primordial goddess of the earth, and the progenitor of all life in the universe."
"Progenitor of all life in the universe, huh? Quite the lofty position you have there." Beerus commented back much more calmly, having recovered quick from his initial surprise. His mind not doubting her claim of such for even a second, given not only the sincerity in her voice, but also the sheer presence she exuded before him.
It strangely reminded him of Shin in a small way, as it held a similar sort of unique feel to it as the creator god's, though to say that meant her power was equivalent to Shin's, he felt would be a grave insult to the woman. She was by no means as weak as the kai was.
Using roughly the same technique as he did with his ki, Beerus could get a sense of her power right now, but even if he couldn't, her nudeness aside, her presence alone affirmed to his honed battle instincts that she was exponentially more powerful than his former associate had ever been. Though, as to how powerful she truly was, he couldn't quite say, as he wasn't able to push much deeper than that. He did have a feeling in his gut however that what he was feeling now, was but a miniscule drop of an incredibly vast ocean of divine power.
Still, to him, that didn't mean much. "Regardless," He continued, ignoring her nudity entirely at this point, as he placed his hands on his hips. His tone taking on a bit more dangerous edge. "I believe I heard you refer to what I said before as foolishness, and then say I was being 'too impetuous', right?"
"Yes, I did." The primordial goddess nodded. "And you were." She added without a shred of hesitation, totally unmoved by the sharp look he gave her then. "Rushing back to Mount Othrys without a plan, even with your impressive level of power, will only lead to your own downfall."
Beerus scoffed. "Oh please, and what would you know? I handled myself just fine with the buffoons on top of that mountain yesterday, and had it not been for me needing to keep my family out of the crossfire, I would've taken them all out, if necessary."
"Whilst I admire and appreciate your willingness to put your family first, I'm afraid I'll have to disagree with you on that last part." She shook her head in the negative. "I did not sense any of my children achieve their ascension the other day, so I can surmise fairly quick that you only fought against their lesser states. Something that, if what you said is true, will have any one of them ascend as soon as they have you in their sights again, and should they do that, you'll be defeated rather swiftly as you are, young one." Gaea finished with a tone of finality, as though she was stating nothing but a cold, hard fact.
Me? Defeated by one of them? Preposterous. He wouldn't dare ever lose to jackoffs like them.
The very thought would've made him laugh, had it not been for the aggravation bubbling up within him at how she was cutting him down. That was something that was very much beginning to seriously get on his nerves.
Still, he found himself tempering his anger for now, as two particular details of what she'd said sunk into his mind. A mixture of both incredulity and intrigue coming out as he spoke back. "Hold on, did you just say that Kronos and his gaggle of idiots are your children? And what do you mean by 'achieve their ascension'?" The latter to him sounded like they all had a transformation of sorts.
"With the exception of Atlas, yes. Kronos and his brothers are my children, as are their wives."
Beerus's eyes widened rather comically and almost felt himself choke on that last particular tidbit. "Hold on, their wives too!? You mean to tell me that they got involved with each other as siblings!?"
"If by 'involved', you mean they married each other and had their own children together, then yes." Gaea tilted her head and gave Beerus an odd look as he winced hard. "I fail to see how that's an issue. It is only natural, after all."
She really just said that, didn't she…? And made it sound like he was the one being weird here… What the fuck…?
The once anthropomorphic cat didn't know what was worse. The fact that his new parents, one of which he intended to destroy, were brother and sister, which where he came from originally carried some seriously foul connotations, or the fact that inwardly, for some bizarre reason, he couldn't feel anywhere near the amount of revulsion he should've for such a bomb being dropped on him. Perhaps just as bad, even though he now knew the woman in front of him was essentially his grandmother, he didn't feel put off by her being pretty much naked in front of him in the slightest. Nor did he feel in anyway disturbed by the image of her being nude in his mind now. If anything, it somehow felt as though nothing had changed, and the image of her nudeness in his head was still far more appealing than Zeus, even though it really shouldn't have been.
He knew for damn sure that if a thought like this had crossed his mind back in his Universe 7 days about his grandmother, whether she could be considered attractive or not, he would've thrown up in his mouth on principle. And then promptly slapped himself for good measure to rid himself of such a repulsive thought.
So then, for the love of whatever higher power out there was listening, why the hell was this scenario any different!? Had his rebirth into this world screwed with his head or something, and he'd only just now realized?
Whilst Beerus was busy having an inner meltdown, Gaea merely shrugged at his odd reaction before briefly turning her attention to the younger brother. "Is he going to be alright?"
Zeus, who up to this point had been quiet, seemed to snap out of whatever thoughts he was having, and it didn't take a genius to know what on considering where his eyes had been, though few men would blame him for that. "Huh? Oh, Beerus?" He glanced over at his brother who's befuddled expression had become so pronounced by this point that it looked as though he was mind-fucked. Laying a hand back on his shoulder, Zeus gave him a light shake. "Uhh… You alright there, brother?"
Beerus made a throaty noise that sounded like a sickly groan, as he shook his head to and fro, coming back to reality. "Ugh… I really wish I hadn't asked." He muttered whilst giving himself a facepalm.
In this case, ignorance truly would've been bliss.
"Hadn't asked what?" Zeus broached curiously with a raised eyebrow.
"Not important." Beerus dodged the question entirely, and decided it was best if he just ignored that subject altogether. No longer wanting to put thought into that 'interesting' reality he'd just been made aware of if he could help it. It only made him far more confused with himself than it had any right to.
Shrugging Zeus's hand off once more, the former G.O.D was about to get back on a more pressing topic, when he was interrupted by the familiar voice of Rhea behind them.
"Oh! Mother. You decided to show yourself, did you?"
Beerus and Zeus looked behind them to see their mother moving closer towards them. A look of mild surprise on her face at the sight of her own mother as she stopped just a foot away.
She didn't notice the way Beerus's eye twitched and his face scrunched up briefly at her, indeed, referring to the woman as 'Mother'. Something that essentially confirmed what Gaea had told him before to be true.
"That I did, dear Daughter." Gaea smiled kindly at her second eldest daughter. "I decided it was prudent to do so whilst I talked with your oldest son and advise him against seeking out his father for the time being. A decision that would've been most unwise by himself as he is. Even with the tremendous power I sense from him."
Rhea looked over at Beerus and seemed to look at him with concern. "You were going to go after him this soon?"
"Hmph. And why not?" He shrugged. "I already told you what I managed to do before our escape from the castle, and seeing as I'm not really the patient type, with the others here now, why not just go back there now and finish my business?"
"I've already told you why you shouldn't, unless you want to be on the losing end, young one." Gaea interjected, bringing Beerus's attention – and by proxy his mother and brother's – back to her, as she stepped forward. Making no attempt to cover her massive mountains of flesh bobbling and jiggling excitedly as she did.
Something a certain silver-haired sibling beside him couldn't help but appreciate.
Beerus eyed her weirdly as she moved rather close to his personal space, the top of her head coming just up to his chin as she stopped mere inches away from him. Her vivacious green pools unflinching as she stared up into Beerus's amber eyes, the wobbling of her magnificent melons only just simmering down as she reached up and placed a hand placatingly on his cheek. "I'll give you this, as it stands right now, from what I can sense of you, the depths of your power certainly exceeds that of Kronos and his brethren when in their lesser states, without question." She complimented earnestly, as she started to caress his cheek in a caring manner.
Beerus immediately felt some discomfort as she did, due to him not being one for such blatantly affectionate gestures, especially for someone he'd only just met. However, before he could react and shrug her hand off his face, he felt a similar pulse of calming aura to his sister Hestia's, only more potent. So much so, he surprisingly had to stop himself from completely sagging as the tension disappeared and leaning into her touch instinctively. Not totally unlike how he would've into a cosy pillow.
"My intention here is neither to disrespect you, nor to downplay your own strength, as even I must admit what I sense from you, especially given your circumstances, is quite shocking indeed. In fact, I don't feel it is an exaggeration to say that your potential may well be greater than anything I've ever felt before. Incredibly so." Mother nature acknowledged, before cutting it down with what she saw as cold, hard reality. "However, that power of yours would be no match for anyone of them in their True Divine Forms."
Ah, so it was a transformation of sorts that they all had in their back pocket. With his more angered side quelled due to the primordial goddess's aura, Beerus had the more reasonable and logical track of his mind taking in what she'd said with the utmost seriousness, even when she could apparently sense his current power level. That was enough to give him pause, as while he did have a bit of an ego to him, he wasn't stupid.
Whilst there was a part of him still that wanted to move her out of his way and trek out anyway, he knew to trust his own gut as it rarely, if ever, let him down. And right now, it was telling him to hear her out for now, if for no other reason than these 'True Divine Forms' she spoke of piquing his interest. "True Divine Forms, huh? Care to elaborate for me?"
"It is the ascended state of being, Beerus, where one reaches their individual zenith of power, by becoming one with all of the essence of their domains at once." She revealed, deciding to just call him by name at this point.
"Essence of their domains?" Beerus didn't even try to hide his lack of knowledge on that particular bit, nor his growing intrigue.
This time, Gaea rose a bemused brow. "You don't know of domains either?" Her gaze then shifted over both Beerus and Zeus's muscular shoulders towards her daughter, as she brought her hand down from Beerus's cheek. "Strange. I would've thought you'd have at least mentioned some of this to him, Rhea."
Glancing behind them again, both Zeus and Beerus in particular saw the sheepish look she gave at that. To her credit though, she didn't shy away from looking at them even when put on the spot like this. "Sorry, Mother. I guess I was just so overjoyed to be back with my children that some things just slipped my mind yesterday."
The earth mother sighed, but no less gave an understanding nod. And as Beerus looked back again, he saw the sympathy in her expression. "That is understandable, I suppose. I know more than anyone the pain you had to endure to allow your foolish brother-husband to devour most of them. And to think, I once had hope that he would be better than his own father." She shook her head despondently. "His fear over Ouranos's prophecy may well have made him worse than he was."
There was that talk about this 'prophecy' again. A part of him would concede to being curious of it, after several mentions, but for the most part, Beerus couldn't be bothered to care about it. All that mattered to him, at the end of the day, was getting his retribution on that child-eating ass clown. Nothing else mattered as far as he was concerned on the, from what Rhea had told him the other day, current 'ruler of the universe'. A title he'd be forgoing with not too long from now.
"Regardless," Gaea started, as she turned her attention back to Beerus. "It seems as though you still have quite a bit to learn, Beerus. So please, for your own sake, hold back here with your siblings for now, and plan ahead instead of just blindly rushing in."
"Hmm…" Beerus seemed to mull this all over for a bit in his head, propping his chin on a closed fist as a thoughtful expression adorned his face.
"Come now, brother. Please, listen to what she's said and take it to heart." Zeus chimed in hopefully. "I know we may not be on the best terms right now, seeing as I haven't done a good job at making a decent impression, but I assure you we're on the same side here. You aren't the only one who despises Kronos and wants to see him taken down." He said while placing an understanding hand upon Beerus's shoulder once more, and when his elder brother didn't just immediately shrug it off, he continued. "I want him taken down too, as I'm sure the rest of our siblings do, for the atrocities he committed to them and you purely for his own gain. I'm willing to lend you all my aid, as I'm sure the rest of our siblings are as well, to see to it that he is. All you need do, is let us. Help our siblings and me to grow ourselves in whatever way you can, and when the time comes, we can stand side by side on the battlefield as a-mmhph!?"
"That's enough. I get it." Beerus responded with a roll of his eyes as he plugged his hand against Zeus's mouth to shut him up. Looking over to give his little brother a flat stare. "You can cut it out with the speech already. I heard it well enough the first time."
"I take it you have an answer then?" Gaea asked inquisitively, inwardly hoping that he wouldn't be rash and go out on his own even after her warnings. That he'd see the sense in what she had relayed to him.
"Answer me this first." Beerus replied back, taking his eyes, and his hand, off of Zeus's mouth, and then promptly wiping said hand over his tunic, in case they'd been somewhere he really needn't know about. "You said that this 'True Divine Form' is achieved by bringing all the essence or whatever from a 'domain' and becoming one with it. Can I take that to mean that if I were to get one of these 'domains' for myself, that I would then be able gain my own 'True Divine Form' then?"
"That is correct." Gaea nodded. "If you manage to get even just one, then you'll have the capacity to achieve one for yourself. Although even if you do gain one, it won't be a simple task to ascend with it."
"Alright then." Beerus grinned. "You want me to pull back and remain here? Fine. I'll play it your way, but under one condition."
"And pray tell, what would that be, Beerus?"
"If I'm to stay here for a time, then seeing as you seem to have all the answers that I need, how about you show me yourself how I can go about getting one of these 'domains' and then teach me how to become one with it, so I can even the playing field."
His request didn't fail to take Gaea, as well as Zeus and Rhea by surprise. "You want me to be your teacher?"
"Why wouldn't I? If you are the progenitor of all life, as you claim, then you've been around longer than anyone here in this universe, I'd imagine, which means you must know how everything works better than anyone. If I'm to allow myself to be taught by anyone, I'd prefer it to be by the best I could get." He wouldn't settle for anything less. His last mentor had been Whis after all, and in terms of knowledge to grant down to him, the angel had been rivalled only by his fellow brothers and sisters, and surpassed only by his father who would never have trained him personally. "Right now, far as I can see, that seems to be you."
Gaea simply let out a good-natured giggle. It'd been quite some time since she'd been given praise like that. "You flatter me, Beerus. Though, I guess you're not exactly wrong with that. You are aware though that you're asking me to aid you in taking down my own son, right?"
"Very." Beerus's grin took on a savage edge. "No offence, but after all he's done, he deserves nothing less. You can refuse if you want, but if you do, I'll personally test out for myself if your claims are true, when I storm your oafish son's castle for round two."
"Such a decision will only end up disastrous for you, Beerus." Gaea shook her head in some form of disbelief at his gumption. It was almost funny to her that he didn't seem to get along with Zeus, when from where she was standing, they seemed to have more in common then he knew.
Still, he wanted an answer, and she didn't really have much else to do at the moment. And in all honesty, her son really had crossed the line with her already, when he did the one thing she could never forgive her former consort for when he did it the first time.
Now that got her thinking… "Alright, Beerus. I'll help you to achieve ascendancy, but if I may, I'd like to request a favour from you as well."
"You're going to ask him to free them from Tartarus, aren't you Mother?" Rhea asked concernedly. Able to tell just from the look in her mother's eyes what she wanted. Hard for her to forget, seeing as she'd seen the same look before many moons ago, when she'd asked it of Kronos.
Gaea sighed. "You're correct, dear Daughter. And why would I not? They never should've been put in there in the first place!" The goddess's voice rose with a hint of anger as she swiped an arm through the air to show a bit of her frustration. The action causing her ginormous globes to jiggle profusely like large slabs of jelly, whilst her brownish buds drew jagged lines in the air. "The Cyclopes and Hekatonchires have done nothing to deserve the awful treatment they've been given, first by their father, and now by their brother no less!"
Cyclopes? Heka-what now? "Hold on a second." Beerus interjected. "What's this about me freeing who now?"
"My other sons." Gaea elaborated, moving her full focus back to Beerus. "They've been trapped down in the pits of Tartarus by Kronos not too long ago. All for the crime of their 'unsightly nature' and 'annoying antics'." The sarcasm and anger were felt in equally high measure by the two brothers in front of her, and their mother behind them, as she repeated Kronos's 'reasons' for imprisoning them. She still couldn't believe the unmitigated gall of Kronos to spout such nonsense to her. "I would be more than willing to personally aid in your growth if you promise me to free your uncles once more from their unjust prison."
The primordial, heavily endowed deity raised a hand up and offered it as a show of agreement. "I can guarantee you they'll be grateful if you do and will be powerful allies for you and your siblings. So, what do you say, Beerus? Do you accept?"
Well, they would have a bone to pick with him, similar to what he did. Not that he personally cared about gaining allies in the slightest. Still, if Kronos had gotten rid of them because he couldn't stand the sight of them, then he supposed he could go to whatever this 'Tartarus' place was and bust them out. Not because he cared about their well-being or anything, but just as a way to spite Kronos before he inevitably put him down.
And yes, he was aware of just how petty that was, and didn't give even the slightest beginnings of a damn about it!
"Fair enough." Beerus nodded, as he took her hand in his. "I accept. You've got yourself a deal."
"Wonderful." Gaea smiled back beatifically. "I'm glad that you agree." Her eyes then glowed an iridescent green, and Beerus felt a strong, protective pulse of energy spreading out all around them. "The entire isle of Crete is now under the same protective layer as the mountain. Now you should have plenty of space to train, as will your siblings, without worry of Kronos spotting you from up above."
Provided none of them broke the isle of course, even with her own divine magic reinforcing it. Though that particular bit didn't need to be said. "We can begin as soon as you like."
"Begin what?" The trio turned at the familiar voice of Metis behind them, seeing the Oceanid come to a stop a good few feet away, on her lonesome. The second-generation Titaness's eyes widening in surprise seeing the primordial goddess of the earth and nature herself stood before her. "Lady Gaea… Why are you-"
"Metis, was it?" Beerus cut the woman off, grabbing her attention. "I assume since you've come back here alone, that must mean the others, other than our mother here, are still resting, yes?" He said while jutting a thumb at said woman for emphasis.
"Uhm, yes, they are." She nodded, choosing not to take offence to being rudely cut off, but no less inquisitive now as to what she'd just missed. "Why do you ask?"
"Be sure to bring them outside for me once they're ready." Beerus's grin was almost splitting his face by now, as his amber eyes shone with a distinct purple and gold hue. "We've all got some training to do."
AND CUT!
Well, that's the end of this latest chapter. And yes, the next chapter is going to be a training montage, essentially, along with a few other things, of course.
I managed to handle my college work better than I thought, which is why this chapter came out two days earlier than I thought it would take. However, I've seen the amount of assignments, tests and projects I have upcoming very soon, enough to where my ass will be truly swamped. So unfortunately, this story likely won't see an update in April at all. You guys will have to wait until May, most likely, at some point. Good news is though that the chapter that comes out then, I'm expecting to be the longest so far by quite a bit. I do also have to try and fit some bits of time here and there to work on some of my other fics as well, if I can.
Also, I'm aware that this chapter was basically just more setup for the most part, but don't worry, the action is coming soon enough. There'll be plenty of battles in future chapters between the Olympians and the Titans, that's for sure. It won't just be Beerus hogging it all. I'd like for my boy Hades in particular to get some shine, and he along with the others – yes, Zeus too – will definitely be getting some.
Also, feel free to make some sweet home Alabama jokes if you want. I know some of will, and probably already have. Things are only going to get even more trippy for Beerus once he finds out the reason why he doesn't feel anywhere near as bothered as he should about the obvious in this chapter. The mind-bending new reality for him that gods in this universe don't have DNA. Essentially meaning they both are and aren't related at the same time.
Mythology is just downright funky, isn't it? With some parts of it being so nonsensical from a logical standard that reading it feels like whoever was making it during the times of Ancient Greece or other cultures may well have been having an acid trip or something, lol.
Gotta love those beliefs of the Ancient world man. They really are something else.
One more thing. Until the Titanomachy arc is over, all chapters will just be named Titanomachy with the appropriate roman numeral after it. Partially for the sake of simplicity, and partially because I'm getting a little lazy on the title front. Hope you all don't mind it.
Anyways, I hope you all got some enjoyment out of this chapter, and I'll see you all with the next one in May. Have a good one.