The Goddess Queen

Zeus grinned boyishly. “Then it’s settled. Let’s draw lots for the kingdoms.”

“The kingdoms?” I said. “But there are only three.”

“Yes,” said Zeus with mock patience, as if I were a child who had to be spoken to slowly in order to grasp anything. “Like I said, humanity would never follow a queen.”

The edges of my vision turned red, and I clenched my jaw so tightly that I could have shattered diamond between my teeth. But Zeus went on as if he didn’t notice, and three gray pebbles appeared in his hand. “Poseidon,” he said with a grand bow, as if he were doing him a favor, letting him draw first.

Poseidon narrowed his eyes and touched each of the three stones in turn. “I know which domain you want,” he said. “And you know which domain I want. So why don’t you just tell me which one to pick?”

Zeus scoffed. “Where would be the fun in that?” But the middle stone began to glow, and Poseidon snatched it up. As he held it in his palm, a great crash of sea against rock echoed around us, and the stone exploded into a rush of water.

Poseidon grinned. “Perfect.”

“Thought you might like that.” Zeus turned to Hades next and offered him the remaining stones. “Brother.”

Hades eyed him for a long moment, and it wasn’t difficult to see what was going on underneath his mask of neutrality. Allowing Zeus to have the sky domain and ultimate rule over the living was dangerous at best. Zeus wasn’t ready for it, but if this council was truly to be, then perhaps we could all temper him. Then again, forcing Zeus into the Underworld to mingle with the dead would kill the light inside him, the same light that had rallied us even when we thought all was lost. Zeus wasn’t meant to remain among the dead. It simply wasn’t his place in the world, and we all knew it. But that didn’t mean he was ready to rule.

Without breaking his stare, Hades picked up one of the remaining pebbles and cradled it in his palm. I held my breath, and at last the stone burst into flame, an unexpected light in the dark. The Underworld. Of course Hades would sacrifice himself for our brother’s happiness.

Before anyone could react, I snatched the third pebble from Zeus’s hand, closing my fist around it. “I will rule the skies,” I said. “When you are ready and have proven yourself worthy of kingship, then you may have this stone back.”

“Hera—” started Demeter, but Zeus interrupted her.

“Is that what you want? Further anarchy and pain for humanity?” He drew himself up to his full height, thunder rumbling around him. In that moment, a flash of our father appeared on his face, and I took a step back. “You condemn us to another war if you insist on not allowing me my rightful place.”

“Why is it your rightful place and not mine? Because of my sex?” I spat, sounding far more courageous than I felt in the face of my brother’s crackling power. Though mine easily rivaled his, it was quiet, understated, the sort you didn’t know was there until it was too late. I could never display my power in such an intimidating manner.

“Yes,” said Zeus without preamble. “Because you had the misfortune of being made in our mother’s image, and our mother chose to defer to our father. Because that is the example the Titans set for not only us, but for the world, and we must maintain some order. You will be a queen if you wish, Hera, but only second to one of us.”

No one challenged him. No one spoke to support me. And as those eternal seconds passed, hatred unlike anything I had ever felt before burned within me. Not even for Cronus had I felt such disgust. “I will prove you wrong someday,” I snarled. “And when that day comes, you will be cast out and fed to the wolves. Do not say I did not warn you.”

Turning on my heel, I stormed off toward the center of the island. It would be a beautiful place to live if not for the scar of healing earth that led straight into the Underworld, where Cronus and the other Titans now resided. Perhaps it wasn’t such a terrible thing that Hades had given up Olympus, after all. At least he could be trusted not to let Cronus escape from the depths of Tartarus.

“Hera!” called Zeus. “Don’t be that way.”

I ignored him. If he didn’t want me there, then I wouldn’t be there. But soon enough I heard footsteps behind me, and as they grew closer, I stopped and whirled around. “Can’t you take a—”

I stopped. It was Hades, not Zeus, who followed me. In the darkness, he looked far too much like our father for my comfort, but we were all used to it by now. He could change his form, as the rest of us could, but I had no doubt he would keep his natural appearance, determined not to let Cronus dictate who and what he was.

“I am sorry for Zeus,” said Hades quietly. “You do not deserve to be spoken to in such a manner.”

I swallowed and held my head high. I wouldn’t let Zeus get to me. He wasn’t worth it. “I won’t be anyone’s second. I’m better than that. We all are.”

He managed a faint smile. “You could never be anyone’s second, because that would imply someone was more deserving than you. Never doubt that you are the reason we have won, Hera. You are our true power, and we all know it. It is simply difficult for some of us to acknowledge our own lacking.”

A pause, and I deflated. “He’ll ruin us.”

“Maybe,” he allowed. “Maybe not. Time will tell.”

“I won’t rule at his side.”

“I do not blame you.” He touched my shoulder. “You deserve better than how he would treat you.”

Something tingled down my spine, and his hand felt warm and heavy against my skin. “I could go into the Underworld with you,” I said. “You will need someone to help you sort through the souls.”

For a split second, his understanding smile changed to one of pity, and I bristled. But before I could react, he said kindly, “Nothing would please me more. As much as I would enjoy your company, however, the Underworld would not suit you. I am fine with the darkness and the quiet, but you, sister, would wither without light. And I cannot do that to you.”

“You don’t know that for sure,” I said. “It would be worth the isolation if I didn’t have to be near Zeus.”

He chuckled softly. “As I said, I do not blame you. But something better will come along, and in the meantime, you will have an equal voice on this council.”

“What if that isn’t enough? What if Zeus still finds a way to take over?”

“Then we will deal with that as it happens,” said Hades. “I am on your side.”

At least someone was. “You’re sure I can’t come with you?”

He pressed his lips to my forehead. “I would never forgive myself for what that place would do to you. But I will come visit you often, and I promise you will never be alone.”

His words warmed me from the inside out, quelling the last of my frustration. “Why do you have to be so good, Hades? Why can’t you be more like Poseidon and Zeus? It’d be easier to insist the lot of you weren’t fit to rule.”

He squeezed my shoulder. “Because if I were, we would be warring amongst ourselves, and we all know what would happen then. Go back to Olympus, Hera. Rest. I will see you soon, and in the meantime, try not to let Zeus get to you. He’s overwhelmed with victory and relief, and that does strange things to men.”

“He’s not a man,” I said. “He’s a god.”

“Then we can expect this to last much longer than it otherwise would.” He embraced me for a brief moment before letting me go. “Do not forget your worth.”

With that, he turned and walked toward the sealed crack in the earth, his footsteps leaving no trace in the dirt. I watched him disappear until darkness consumed him, and once he was gone, I took a shaky breath and returned to the others. I would never follow Zeus, but as long as Hades was there to introduce reason, perhaps this new life wouldn’t be so bad, after all.

Sometime in the night, a sharp rap of knuckle against the wall of my Olympus bedroom startled me awake. While normally we did not need to sleep, after exerting our powers as we all had during the final battle, we required rest. Which only made the knock more confusing.

“Come in,” I called, sitting up in bed and smoothing my hair. I was exhausted, my body heavy with sleep, but it was hard to shake the sensation of being on edge, as I had been during the past ten years. A knock then could’ve meant another battle or a turn we hadn’t seen coming. We’d devoted every moment to strategizing and watching, and none of us had gotten a proper amount of rest.

The curtains parted, and Zeus stepped through. My stomach turned. Olympus hovered eternally between the blue sky of day above us and the rainbow of dusk below, but even with the golden sunlight that washed across his face, he looked pale. As he should have. If there was any justice in the world, he felt guilty for how he’d treated me and our sisters.

“Hera?” he said softly. “I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“Since when have you ever been concerned with courtesy?” I curled back up in bed and closed my eyes. “Be quick about it. I was having a nice dream.” One that involved dark hair, silver eyes and a lack of sunlight Olympus would never experience.

Zeus said nothing for nearly a minute. By the time he finally spoke, I’d drifted back to the edge of sleep. “I love you.”

My eyes flew open. “Excuse me?”

“I have for a very long time.” He stepped closer, reaching out for me as if he expected me to take his hand, but I didn’t move. Zeus hesitated. “You are extraordinary, Hera. You are beautiful. You are powerful. And out of all my sisters, I think you would be best suited to stand at my side.”

I shook my head. “You have enough women to keep you company, Zeus. I won’t be another horse in your stable.”

“You wouldn’t be. I would devote myself to you and your power. To you and your brilliance. I will forsake the others if you insist I must, but I want to marry you.”