(Greek Mythology) The Abyss
Chapter 87
"Eris." Nyx called out to Eris, who had just left the abyss.
"Mother Goddess." Hearing the voice, Eris stopped and turned to bow to Nyx.
"Give me the box." Looking at the black box made of some unknown material in Eris's hand, Nyx sighed enigmatically and spoke to Eris.
"His Majesty Tartarus instructed me to give it to Princess Gaia." The implication was that he was refusing Nyx.
"I will give it to Gaia myself. Brother won't mind, right, brother?" The last sentence was addressed to Tartarus.
"Eris, give the box to Nyx." From within the abyss temple, Tartarus, who had overheard the conversation between the two gods, spoke softly.
As long as it happened in the abyss, for Tartarus, there was nothing he couldn't know, only things he didn't want to know.
"Yes." Eris replied, then handed the box to Nyx.
"I wonder whose daughter you are." Nix took the box, his simple movements exuding an elegant charm, his complaint seemingly genuine yet feigned.
"Of course, I'm your daughter, Mother Goddess." Eris blinked, clinging to Nix's arm dependently, looking like a dutiful child.
"I didn't realize that with you, your older brother's words always carry more weight than mine." Nix tilted his head, looking at his daughter.
"I always listen to you, Mother Goddess." Eris was adept at downplaying the issue.
"You're such a smooth talker." Nix poked Eris's forehead, a smile playing on his lips.
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The earth trembled violently, emitting a deep rumble. Lightning bolts struck continuously from the sky, accompanied by the sounds of battle, shaking everyone's eardrums.
Suddenly, darkness descended. The moon goddess, the sun god, and the stars—the deities of light—at the command of Zeus, the king of the gods, caused all that emitted light to vanish, plunging the world into darkness.
During the war of the giants, Gaia, the earth goddess, granted the giants an ability that made them immortal. Even the most severely wounded could quickly recover and return to battle, and even the dead could be resurrected.
Only one herb in the world could kill them, and only the bravest mortal could obtain this herb to slay the giants. Therefore, Zeus sent Athena to find the herb, using darkness to hinder Gaia's actions.
Under the cover of darkness, Athena was ordered to harvest the herb and give it to Heracles, the mortal destined to help the gods kill the invading giants, as foretold by an oracle, requesting his participation in the battle.
Athena, hastily departing, failed to notice that not far from where the herbs had once grown, a slender figure slowly emerged.
Everything on earth was no secret to the goddess of the land; if Gaia truly desired the herbs, it would be quite easy.
However…
"There's no need," Gaia said coldly, her expression as haughty as ever.
"Gaia, why are you doing this? It's not time for Zeus to abdicate yet. Even if you start a war, you can't replace the king of the gods. You know all this, don't you?" Especially since the god who started the war didn't seem to care much about it.
Nyx's figure blended into the night, a folding fan in her hand, her demeanor naturally elegant, her beautiful eyes fixed on her only sister.
Gods always seem to know more than other beings, especially the first generation of gods like themselves. She couldn't understand why Gaia always bothered with these futile efforts, when in reality, it made no difference to them who was king of the gods.
"Perhaps… it's resentment," Gaia finally answered after a long silence, her voice soft but crystal clear to Nyx.
She was Chaos's daughter, her strength, status, and methods… in every way, she was no less than any of the gods. Yet, simply because she was a goddess, she didn't even have the qualifications to compete for the title of king of the gods.
The title of queen of the gods sounded prestigious, but she was merely an appendage of the king of the gods, one of the creator gods, the goddess of the earth, the mother of the gods. These titles were certainly revered, but only in name.
She was respected by the gods, her status was exalted. Even Uranus, after learning of her infidelity and the birth of a child with Pentheus, dared not truly harm her in the slightest.
At the same time, she couldn't stop Uranus, Cronus, and Zeus's actions. She could only watch as they imprisoned her children one by one in Tartarus or punished them with endless suffering, because she wasn't the king of the gods and had no legitimate reason to interfere in the gods' actions.
Of course, she didn't deny that she wasn't a good mother. Although she couldn't bear to see them suffer, she hadn't cared much for her children either. Her resentment stemmed more from her hatred of failing for a trivial reason and the feeling of being constrained, even if that constraint was small.
"And you, are you resigned to this?" Gaia stared intently into Nyx's eyes, as if trying to see into his heart.
"Unwilling to accept it?" Nix chuckled, showing no discomfort under Gaia's gaze. "Perhaps."
"Perhaps?" Gaia countered. "My dear sister, do you think I don't know you? Essentially, your pride is no less than mine."
Both Gaia and Nix shared an arrogance that seemed more natural compared to other deities, etched into their souls.
As sisters born at the same time, the difference between them was that one openly displayed her pride, making it obvious to everyone, while the other restrained it, revealing her true nature only subtly.
"I am indeed somewhat resentful," Nicholas confessed, "but so what? I don't think my life is bad now, Gaia. You're too greedy."
As the first generation of gods, they possessed far more than the other gods. Even if they weren't the God-Kings, no one dared to show them the slightest disrespect. Their immense power sometimes forced even the God-Kings to bow before them. The position of God-King was merely icing on the cake, not truly important—more important than the things they had already given up.
What you gain, you must lose; equivalent exchange is an unchanging truth. If the price of becoming a God-King is marital discord and mother-son enmity, then it's better not to have that position.
Chapter 87