Zeus Thunderheart's Arc

Chapter 1 of 9

Zeus Thunderheart wanted a son who could survive the twelve trials, and the only woman strong enough to bear that son lived in the valley below Olympus. But he could not leave the mountain. His wife watched him. She stood at the edge of the temple terrace, feeding peacocks by hand, and her eyes tracked every step he took. One trip to the valley, one whisper of a mortal woman, and she would strike the unborn child down before its first breath. He found his daughter in the temple's inner hall, sorting scrolls. Athena Wise looked up from her work. She was small, quick-eyed, with an owl clasp on her belt and a lion pendant at her throat. She listened before she spoke, and she never wasted a word. "You need her distracted," Athena said. She did not ask what he wanted. She had already guessed. "And you need someone Hera trusts." "There is no one your stepmother trusts," Zeus said. "There is one." Athena led him to the courtyard where the peacock keeper worked. Callista Pteroessa knelt among the birds, brushing seed into their feed trough. Her braid hung heavy over her shoulder, and peacock eyes glittered on her purple robe. She served Hera in everything. She was the last person Zeus expected to help him betray Hera. "Lord Zeus," Callista said, rising. She kept her hands folded. "The queen watches the terrace. She will notice if you linger here." "Then you understand my problem," Zeus said. Callista looked at Athena, then back at Zeus. "I tend her birds. I do not tend her marriage." "I am not asking you to lie to her," Zeus said. "Only to keep her looking one way while I look another." Callista was quiet. Athena stepped closer. "The white bunny in the west garden slipped its pen this morning. If someone told the queen her prized rabbit had run loose, she would leave the terrace to find it. She loves that creature more than her peacocks." Callista's mouth tightened. "You would send her chasing a rabbit." "I would give her a reason to move," Athena said. "You would only carry the news." Callista turned the seed sack in her hands. She looked at the terrace, where Hera's figure stood dark against the sky. Then she set the sack down. "The queen has been unkind to me lately," Callista said. "She blamed me when the bunny escaped. It was not my fault." She met Zeus's eyes. "I will tell her it wandered toward the far cliffs. That will take her half the morning." Callista climbed the terrace steps. Zeus heard her voice, then Hera's sharp cry. The peacocks scattered. Hera swept down the far stair, her gaze fixed on the cliffs. Zeus went the other way. He left Olympus by the western gate and started down toward the valley. Behind him, the terrace stood empty. For one morning, no one was watching.