I Am Zeus-Chapter 26: Division

Two Weeks Later — Mount Dikti, Peak of Clouds

The war was over. The Titans were sealed, the battlefield silent, and the scars of the world had begun to heal.

And for two weeks, Zeus hadn’t touched his armor once.

Instead, he stayed here—on the quiet peak of Dikti—with Metis.

Sometimes talking. Sometimes walking. Sometimes just sitting in silence while clouds rolled below their feet. The storm had left his veins, and in its place was a strange new calm.

She made that possible.

Metis—clever, quiet, sharp in mind but soft in voice. She didn’t treat him like a god. She didn’t even treat him like a king. She just looked at him the same way before and after he’d taken down Cronus.

It made him breathe easier.

But not everyone liked that.

Elsewhere, Beneath the Olive Shrine – Hera

Hera’s hand hovered over a bowl of sacred water. Her fingers traced the surface slowly, stirring the reflection until it cleared and showed Metis’s face.

She wasn’t glaring.

She wasn’t fuming.

She was... studying.

"This is not jealousy," she murmured. "This is correction."

Her eyes narrowed.

"She moves like a queen already. Subtle. Steady. Clever enough to stay near him, but never too close in public. She’s building a future."

Her fingers curled, and the water froze solid in the bowl.

Hera stood.

"I won’t allow it."

This wasn’t rage. This wasn’t some broken-hearted tantrum.

This was calculation.

She had spent the war watching everything. Who fought. Who fled. Who stayed loyal. And now—she watched who dared think themselves worthy to stand beside the King of the Skies.

And she had found only one obstacle.

Metis.

The Next Day – Garden of Aegis

Metis stood beneath a fig tree, speaking with Hestia. She was calm, smiling. But she felt it. The weight in the wind.

Hera approached like sunlight over a blade. Warm, regal, and dangerous if you looked too long.

"Sister," Hera said softly, "you’ve been spending a lot of time with Zeus."

Metis nodded. "He asked me to help build the new world. I said yes."

"So that’s what you’re doing?" Hera tilted her head. "Building."

"Of course."

A pause.

Then Metis smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. "And you? Are you helping build... or rearrange?"

Their gazes met. Long. Still.

Hera chuckled and walked past, but Metis turned slightly, watching her go.

"She’s planning something," Metis whispered under her breath.

But she didn’t confront her.

Because smart queens don’t strike early.

They let the trap close first.

Three Days Later – Throne Summit

Zeus stood at the center of the high altar, looking down at the wide table of gods. The final issue remained.

The world.

The division of it.

Hades leaned against one of the marble columns. "Let’s not drag this. You know what I want." frёeωebɳovel.com

Poseidon smirked. "You mean the shadows and bones? You sure you don’t want something with sunlight?"

Hades didn’t blink. "I don’t need sunlight. I need silence."

Zeus nodded. "Fine. You take the Underworld. You’ll guard the dead, the gates, and the depths."

Hades gave a sharp nod.

Poseidon crossed his arms. "Then what’s left for me? Don’t tell me you’re handing me lakes and puddles."

Zeus raised a brow. "The oceans, brother. Every one of them. Surface to deepest trench."

"That’s not enough."

Zeus frowned.

Poseidon stepped forward. "You get the sky. You get the storms. You get Olympus. You sit on the throne. And I swim?"

Zeus’s voice sharpened. "The oceans touch every land. They connect every realm. Don’t underestimate what you’ve been given."

Hades stepped between them. "It’s not about what we want. It’s about what balances the world. I don’t care for the sky. I don’t care for the sea. I’ll take the dead. But if we turn this into ego..."

He looked at them both.

"The world will rot before it begins."

The silence settled like a heavy fog.

Zeus exhaled slowly. "Then it’s done."

He raised his hand.

With a pulse of divine light, he etched it in the fabric of reality.

Zeus — Sky and Storm, King of Olympus.

Poseidon — Seas and Earthquakes, Lord of the Oceans.

Hades — Death and the Underworld, Keeper of the Lost.

Their domains sealed.

Poseidon grumbled. "Next time, I want a vote."

Zeus smirked. "We’ll call it a tie."

That Night – Edge of the Old Battlefield

Metis sat alone. Watching the stars.

She heard the footsteps before the voice.

"You’re dangerous."

She turned. Hera stood there, arms folded, crown gleaming under the moon.

"So are you," Metis answered.

"I thought about poisoning you," Hera said.

Metis blinked.

"Then I thought about isolating you. Making Zeus doubt you. Maybe telling him you plan to control him."

"You would’ve wasted your breath."

"I know."

Silence.

Then Hera sighed. "I’m not angry because you’re clever. I’m angry because I wasn’t faster."

Metis tilted her head. "Faster at what?"

"At seeing him first."

Metis looked at her.

Really looked.

And for a moment, her voice softened. "You still can, Hera. There’s room in the sky."

But Hera shook her head.

"I don’t want a space beside him. I want the one you took."

Metis stood slowly. Not scared. Not proud. Just... honest.

"Then you’ll have to take it from me."

They stood like that for a long time.

Two queens.

One already chosen.

One still playing the long game.

And neither backing down.

Later – Mount Dikti, Temple Balcony

Zeus leaned over the edge, arms on the railing, watching the moonlight touch the ruins far below.

Metis came up behind him, silent.

He didn’t turn.

"She’s coming for you," he said.

"I know."

"You scared?"

"No."

He finally looked at her.

"You sure you want to do this? This world? This crown?"

Metis smiled, tired but warm. "I don’t want the crown."

"Then what?"

"You."

He stepped closer. His forehead touched hers.

And in the quiet between storms...

They stayed.

Because they both knew—

The war might’ve ended.

But the game?

The game had just begun.

And Zeus would let them fool themselves.

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