by Gene Stiles
“Just as importantly,” Zeus said, his golden eyes blazing brighter than the flaming sun above them, “we owe it to ourselves. We will never be free to live in peace anywhere in this world as long as Cronus rules.”
“He wants a war,” Zeus said, his voice black and ominous. “It is time we gave him one. It is time we made his prophecy come true.”
Chapter II
“Things are quiet. Too quiet,” Iapetus said as he and Cronus walked the late afternoon streets of Atlantis. His black eyes scanned the busy sidewalks and the light, but steady stream of traffic on the boulevards and roadways as if searching for an unseen enemy. The hairs on the back of his thick neck stood on end and he felt a prickling feeling at the edge of his senses. “It concerns me greatly, Lord Father.”
“Oh, Iapetus,” Cronus replied with a laugh as he picked up a large red apple from the bin of the street vendor and polished it on his embroidered, dark blue tunic, “you worry overmuch. You should be happy. There have been no problems within the empire in over fifty years. Once we wiped out Olympia and ended the threat of Zeus, we have had peace. All thoughts of rebellion died out with was no figurehead to lead it.”
Cronus paid the bowing man behind the counter, ignoring the man’s protestations. He continued his stroll through the open market, enjoying the feel of the cool, crisp autumn air upon his bronzed skin. The remnants of heavy early morning dew caused the spires and towers of Atlantis to sparkle like diamonds in the bright sunlight. Flocks of birds drifted across the bright blue sky along with wispy strands of high cirrus clouds. Their smaller, bolder brethren flitted between the stalls and feasted on tidbits of food dropped on the ground.
It was the attitude of the People that buoyed his spirits the most though. All around Cronus, they moved with purpose, joy and serenity. His presence among them was met with smiles and respectful greetings. When he stopped to speak with an individual or group, Cronus could see their chests puff with pride at his attention. Atlantis was alive and thriving, all fear and anger washed away making room for prosperity and hope.
“You see, my brother,” Cronus said after leaving the main causeway and heading for his offices in the Great Pyramid, “without the Twelve to create dissention or rebels to divide loyalties, the People are happy. My rule is absolute. All is well. Your concerns are without merit.”
“My concerns are that it happened too quickly,” Iapetus replied with a grumble as they stepped into the foyer. All around him, people wound their way between the tall pillars and through the long hallways hurrying about their daily tasks. Not everyone smiled or bowed as he and Cronus passed, but neither did he see angst or anger. “Do you not think it strange that all insurgencies stopped suddenly throughout the empire after Olympia fell? Not just some. Not over time. All at once. It was like a switch was thrown. This is not natural.”
“And yet it has held for decades,” Cronus responded as they entered the lift to his chambers atop the pyramid. He placed a massive paw on Iapetus’ broad shoulder. “I think it just may be the warrior in you looking for an adversary where there is not one. Enjoy your respite. We are not finished uniting the empire. There is still Ra to deal with.”
Cronus stopped at the carved oak doors of his private chambers and turned to his brother. “All goes well with our arms development. You will have your battles soon enough. Until then, rest and appreciate all we have accomplished together. You have earned it and I thank you.”
“Go find a good woman to wrestle with,” Cronus smiled from the threshold. “If you need a fight, I know one or two who might enjoy a little loving combat.”
“I just may do that,” Iapetus responded with a small grin before turning away. “If you need me, I will be on comlink.”
“Go,” Cronus said before closing the door. “I am sure I can manage without you for a time.”
Iapetus turned to walk back down the granite-walled hallway. Cronus could not see the grin never reached his brother’s dark eyes. He did not notice the tension in the raven-haired man’s stance or the set of his jaw. Something was wrong and it gnawed at his nerves. Iapetus would find out what it was.
Tecmessa slipped out of the bed as her Atlantean Commander lover snored in exhausted slumber. She slipped her floor-length, sparkling red dress over the lithe, well-muscled body and picked up her crimson slippers. Moving silently, she left the sated man to his erotic dreams and headed out into the night. She had gotten what she needed from him.
Once outside, Tecmessa put on her shoes, tied her long, strawberry-blond tresses into a tight bun and threw a heavy, red, hooded cloak over her slender shoulders and made her way through the near-empty streets of Atlantis. She walked boldly, not attempting her hide her movements. Many late night denizens admired her fluid, graceful stride. A courageous few attempted flirtatious comments which Messa ignored. Those brazen enough to get too close or dare touch her quickly slunk away after one look from those icy, dark blue eyes.
Once Messa was within a block of the Wind Song, she took on a different persona. She turned her cloak inside out so the black inner-lining blended with the dark, rendering her almost invisible. Messa became a ghost flitting from shadow to shadow, lost in misty alleyways.
Tecmessa touched the hidden panel in the Wind Song’s back wall and was admitted into the secret corridor that led inside. Once the door closed behind her, dim lights came on which guided her to the secluded chambers beneath the club. She stepped into the spacious, well-appointed living room and hung her cloak on a large wooden peg.
“Cronus has his main weapons facility in the center of the eastern desert at a place called Sirenum,” Messa told the other six people gathered in the room. “It is heavily guarded and the barren landscape surrounding it will make a stealthy approach difficult to achieve.”
“Do you know what kinds of arms he is currently developing out there?” Alkaia asked from the small kitchen where she was preparing breakfast.
“My source said Cronus is working on various types of explosives and building missiles that are capable of being fired from the ground,” Messa replied as she gratefully accepted a tall cup of hot green tea. She eased herself into the corner of one of the long, plush sofas and sighed deeply. “If such a weapon becomes mobile, it could prove deadly.”
“And was your source happy to divulge such secret information to you?” Derinoe quipped with a grin as she set plates and utensils around the oak dining table. Her hazel eyes sparkled as she glanced at her sister, knowing how persuasive the woman could be.
“Very happy,” Tecmessa responded, smiling slyly. “You know how men are. Boastful, arrogant and more than willing to prove how important they are. He is the Commander of the Sirenum guards so he has a lot to say. He is very useful.”
“In more ways than one I bet,” Iphito laughed from her chair across from Messa.
The other women joined in, tossing lewd comments and good-humored jabs back and forth. Between them, they had created a network of contacts and unwitting informants throughout Atlantis. For almost a decade, they cultivated relationships with powerful men in all levels of Cronus’ government. If it was happening in this city, it did not take long for these women to learn about it.
“Zeus will want to know as soon as possible,” Derinoe said as she beckoned the others to the table. Her tone took on a more serious mien, her brilliant green eyes becoming more somber. “I will get word to him over the secure comlink as soon as I get home. Is there anything else I should pass along?”
As they dined on fresh eggs, sausage patties and fresh bread, the women talked of all they had heard in the last week. Every tale they gathered, every rumor and fact they heard was passed along the network to Olympus, the new home of Zeus and their people. A war was coming soon and they needed to know every strength and weakness of their enemy and these ladies knew how to get it.
“We need to get someone inside Sirenum,” Zeus said, leaning over the huge conference table in his war room. His yellow-red hair was held away from his broad
, deeply furrowed forehead by a simple band of brown leather as he added the location of the weapons facility to the maps. “I want to know exactly what Cronus is doing and how it is being done. This is critical if we are to create adequate defenses. How goes our own projects?”
“Our own scientists have duplicated his cannons thanks to the salvage of the sunken warships,” Lelantos said, his gold-flecked hazel eyes dark and stern as he looked across the table at Zeus. “We have increased their range and mounted them on sleds. The armories in the Sanctuary are well stocked with plasma cannons, Condensed Light rifles and pulse weapons. From my bows to hardened steel swords and long knives, the racks are filled to near capacity. What more do we wait for?”
“Lelantos,” Loki said, putting a hand on his friend’s shoulder, “I know how badly you wish to make Cronus pay for his crimes. I completely agree as do we all, however, we must move with caution if we have any hope of defeating him.”
Lelantos looked up into Loki’s mahogany gaze, his lips drawn tightly across his squared jawline. “Cronus destroyed two of my homes. He murdered my friends and my family and for over fifty years we have sat back and done nothing. It is time Home and Olympia were avenged!”
“And they will be,” Hera assured him. Her sharp, angular features were hard and firm, but her viridian eyes were filled with compassion. “No one desires this more than I and my family. It is because of us that all of you have suffered. We seek to redeem ourselves in your eyes as well as our own.”
“Yet, we must make sure our sword strikes do not bounce off the shields of Atlantis,” Hera continued, sliding her slender fingers through her golden-red hair and pushing it away from her high cheekbones. “Cronus surprised us with his weapons before. I do not wish for that to happen again. Do you?”
“No,” Lelantos agreed glumly, his huge fists clenched at his sides.
“You will not have long to wait,” Zeus assured him. He swept his hand across the maps and charts strewn across the table, looking up at his siblings and advisors. “All of our intelligence shows that Cronus is massing troops and building up his armory for some type of offensive.”
“It cannot be against us,” Demeter chimed in, a small smile whisking across her pink lips. “We are dead, remember?”
The light chuckles that echoed throughout the room eased the tension a bit, which is what she wanted. “We have been very careful to keep that rumor intact,” she said, leaning back in her brown leather chair. Demeter let her voice become a little harder as she looked at those gathered around her. “So the real question is who Cronus is planning to fight this time.”
“That, sister,” Hera replied, “is a very good question.”
Hades walked through the newest corridors of the incredibly massive Sanctuary complex beneath the Milankovic Mountains across the bay from the ruins of Olympia. He ran his hand along the smoothed, rounded walls as he went, inspecting the surfaces for any cracks or weaknesses. Gratified he found none, Hades mounted his sled and sped down the tunnel toward the mammoth, steel-backed doors that opened onto the vast plains at the edge of the Lunae Valley. He slipped on his polarized glasses before stepping out into the bright sunshine to protect his light-sensitive eyes.
Once outside with the chilly wind blowing against his naturally copper skin, Hades ordered the doors closed. The two huge panels slid together with barely a whisper. The outer surfaces of the two-foot thick steel sheets were covered with a thin dusting of powdered rock that blended perfectly with the surrounding cliffs rendering the entrance completely invisible when closed.
“Perfect,” Hades said into his comlink. “Open it back up.” Ponderously, the gigantic doors slid along hidden tracks until they were completely retracted into the mountainside.
This was only one of thirty such sets, but it held a special importance to the people of Olympus. Most of the countryside in this extensive mountain range was rocky, jagged or dry. For hundreds of miles in any direction, the land was inhospitable and barren. There were few fertile areas capable of sustaining sizeable farmlands and the Lunae Valley was one of the two largest.
Another mountain was walking toward him, waving and smiling, a lovely woman at his side. Eriktis strode up to Hades and gripped his forearm in friendly greeting. Loren gave him a warm, tight hug, her dark brown eyes alive and happy. The three walked leisurely toward the waiting sled and slipped inside. Chatting as they went, they took a winding route toward the Main House of the settlement.
Well-tended fields spread out as far as the eye could see beneath a sky of ocean blue. Puffy, white clouds drifted lazily in the light, cool easterly breeze. The shimmering rays of the blazing golden sun were just hot enough to take the chill off the late-morning autumn air, making the field work as pleasant as it was rewarding.
“It looks like it will be a great harvest this year, Erik,” Hades said, looking out at the rows of tall maize stalks on either side of the packed dirt roadway. He saw teams of people working among the plants, filling baskets to overflowing with the yellow and green cobs. Those close to the road raised a hand in happy greeting as they passed by.
“That is shall be,” Eriktis nodded, his hands on the control yoke. His waterfall of wavy, blond hair was tied at the back of his thick neck and near his waist to keep it out of his sparkling blue eyes. The wind slipping through the open windows ruffled it around his square-jawed face and wide, toothy smile.
“We have storehouses bulging with vegetables, potatoes and tubers of all types,” Erik said, his mammoth chest swelling with pride. “The orchards near the lake are producing apples, cherries, peaches and pears. Our vineyards are giving us red, green, white and purple grapes that make the sweetest of wines.” He glanced at Hades and added with a grin, “We shall spend much of the winter drunk, my friend.”
“I think not,” Hades chuckled, his heart gladdened to see the joy radiating from his friends. It had been a while. The destruction of Olympia had taken a heavy toll on all of them. “I prefer to keep my wits about me.”
“You have wit?” Loren said, leaning against his big arm for a moment, her dark brown eyes sparkling. “I heard the Lord of the Underworld was always dour and harsh.”
“Usually,” Hades replied with a smirk. “Yet, how could I remain gloomy in the sight of such beauty?”
“You are referring to the countryside, are you not?” Loren giggled.
“Am I?” Hades responded with a laugh, tussling her mahogany hair.
“I would hope so,” Eriktis joked, trying to sound tough. “Remember, I am much bigger than you.”
“I shall keep that in mind, sir” Hades responded, his tone stiffening, but his lips quirked up to one side. “Forgive me.”
“This time,” Eriktis said lightly as he brought the sled to a stop in front of a huge stone and wood building. “This time.”
The inside of the Main House looked much different than one would think when seeing the rough wood and stone exterior and the thatched roof. The twenty-five-foot ceiling was covered with sound-dampening panels and bands of pitted metal embedded with circuitry that blocked outside electronic surveillance. Even though not a single Atlantean Bird had been spotted within five hundred miles of here in almost fifty years, no chances were taken.
The polished oak floor was covered with thick rugs except for the spaces in front of the mammoth hearths on either end of the two hundred by three hundred foot structure. Almost the full length of one wall was lined with desks, monitors, computers and crystal readers. Huge display panels hung above them, keeping everyone else inside aware of the data and information coming in from the far corners of the world.
Hades pulled up a chair at one of the long rows of tables that took up almost half the space. A noontime meal of steamed or roasted vegetables, baked fish, seared meats and sweetbreads was being served to half the farm workers along with wine, ale and tea. He was famished and the rich, succulent aromas made his mouth water. Hades thanked the server who brought him a large porcelain plate, utensils, a wooden
tankard and a linen napkin. He picked his choices from the heaping platters being passed around and listened to the happy, contented conversations filling the hall.
“It is incredible to see all the races of man gathered together and happy, working toward the common good,” Hades mused between bites of brazed venison. “This is what the world should be. I wish it could stay this way.”
“It cannot,” Eriktis said glumly, mopping up meat juices from his plate with a piece of bread. “Not until the scourge of Cronus is wiped from the land.”
He dabbed his chin with his napkin and let his gaze sweep across the room. “The only reason we have not been attacked as before is because Atlantis has yet to find us.”
“Oh, Erik,” Loren said, patting his forearm, “do not be so dramatic. You know that is not completely true.” Her small, pink lips were quirked to one side in a tiny smile. “They never send Birds this far into the mountains and, even if they did, they have no cause to bother us. We are just another odd, out of the way settlement of farmers. We pose no threat.”
“As long as he does not realize we support Zeus,” Eriktis said flatly.
“How could he?” Hades asked, his good mood not dampened by the Nephilim’s concerns. “We are all dead, remember? Cronus is safe. Also, Olympus – which, again, he knows nothing about - is hundreds of miles from here through harsh, rugged, mountainous terrain. Unless he knew of the Sanctuary tunnels, Cronus could find no connection between the two cities.”
“And how is Zeus these days?” Loren asked, sipping at her sweetened tea.