The God of Dread and Terror/Chapter 1: Escape from Tartarus

“Zeus”, said Athena. “As wise as you may be, your ignorance has costed us unprecedented amounts of loss.” “Gods should not interfere with the likes of mankind.” “You cannot keep betrothing and impregnating mortal women for your own game.” “This spell you have cast upon the Earth has awaken some of the oldest legends of the Titans.” “You have destroyed whole civilizations over night with your shenanigans, stemming from you and your brothers’ contempt for one another.” “It’s time that you put all that to rest.” “I thought after Perseus defeated the Titans you had learned your lesson.” “It’s time for a new age of mankind, an age where Gods don’t exist, and mortals are free to choose how they will come to pass” “The Fates have declared that a child will be born with a red scar over his eye, and he will be the final judge of what will come to pass in Olympus.”

“Hush”, Zeus snapped. We must do something! “We can’t just sit back and let a child take over our throne.” “He will be the reason that our people will stop praying; we will grow weak and weary without their prayers; we will practically starve because of this prophecy the Fates have spoken against us.” “How foolish could you be”, questioned Athena? “The people rebel because they have no faith in bringing you offerings.” “You have pit families against each other time and time again, and that’s why the people don’t pray.” “That’s why we will starve.” “It is your bigotry that makes all of us weak.” “Hermès bring me the Fates”, Zeus proclaimed. “We must figure out who births him and put an end to him before he becomes of age.” “Apollo summon Helios and find Aphrodite and Hephaestus.” Artemis insinuated,”Ares is not present either.” It was highly unlikely for those three to be absent at the present time. So, Zeus ordered Apollo to find him also. “We will vote on how we will solve this problem once we find Aphrodite, Hephaestus, and Ares,” said Zeus. “You are dismissed”

Meanwhile, Apollo summoned the power of Helios through a crystal ball he had given them to solve their problem. Apollo took one hand and waved it over the crystals, and suddenly a misty projection of what had come to pass with the missing Gods was revealed. By surprise, it was revealed that Ares and Aphrodite were having sex behind Hephaestus’ back, and now all the Greek world would know of their business; but somehow, Hephaestus didn’t want to believe it, and Apollo devised a plan so that he may capture Ares and Aphrodite in the act. Apollo told Hephaestus to sew a golden fabric so thin that it is invisible and infrangible. She told him to lay his trap across the bed and tell Aphrodite you are leaving. Ares rarely knew when Hephaestus was at home; This time they knew it would be different; Hephaestus would come home early and see Ares and Aphrodite in the bed together, and that would be enough proof to quell his rebellion at the thought of his wife loving another. To his surprise, when Hephaestus summoned all the Gods down from Olympus, they only laughed at him, angering Hephaestus even more. This rule was strict among the Gods. They believed in formal infidelity where it was okay to sleep with multiple people as long as they didn’t remain loyal to one. After that, Hephaestus left Aphrodite, and Ares remained in contact with her.

Back on Olympus, the Gods were reconvening at a meeting, discussing what they should do about the prophecy. Zeus spoke and said, “we should sacrifice the child to the Titans.” Athena said, “that is blasphemous.” “Maybe we should try to win his favor and have him fight alongside us as a God.” The other gods cackled at the thought of another God being added to Mount Olympus. Ares, in particular, swore he would be the one to bring the child to justice. Hermès walked in and told them to be quiet. “I have brought the Fates to tell us more about the prophecy.” “1 child will come along, and then a 2nd will follow. A third child will be born, and the 4th will be sorrow”, said the Fates. “A child born of ice but as hot as the sun.” The epitome of Greek mythology whereas he will make love run? When his day comes, the Gods will dread. The Battlecries of Ares will solemnly spread. “What is this you speak of?,” demanded Zeus! “How dare you come in my chamber speaking gibberish!” “If you don’t clarify, I will take your eye and squash it beneath the heel of my boot.” “You will be cursed to live in darkness forever.” “The Fates have spoken,” said Hermès. ”Leave them be.” “We will get our chance.” “Now, we must put it up to a vote and decide the fate of the child.” “All in favor of Zeus’ plan?” Hera, Hades, Apollo, Ares, Poisedon, Dionysus, Hecate, Eros, Demeter, Selene , and Hermès sided with Zeus, and Aphrodite, Helios, Hestia, Artemis, Persephone, Asclepius, Gaia, Atlas, and Hephaestus, sided with Athena. “There you have it,” said Hermès. “The majority vote says we capture him and send him to Thanatos to live forever.” “You’re making a mistake”, screamed Athena! “How could you do the same thing your father did to you?” Hera wondered quietly how a mortal could defeat gods, but she kept her mouth closed. The only gesture she made was momentary. She looked at Aphrodite with a gaze of contempt. Little did they know, this would be the beginning of an epic tale.

A few years after the meeting, Aphrodite became pregnant with twins, and Ares was the father. The first born she named Phobos, and the second one was named Deimos. Phobos is the God of Fear and Panic, and Deimos is the God of Terror and Dread. Aphrodite was excited about her child’s birth. She loved them both equally, but Deimos was odd. When Deimos was small, he was born with a birthmark. He had a tiny red scare over his eye, and Aphrodite tried to conceal it with makeup. Nobody noticed until Deimos was the age of 16. When Ares came back to check on his children, he noticed how big and bright the scar had gotten. So, he went and told Zeus of the child with the red scar. Zeus was in complete shock. He did not know the child would be born of two Gods. This angered him, and he seen the skepticism on Ares’ face. “However much you love that child, you must let it go”, said Zeus. “We must sacrifice him to the Titans to renew the human’s faith in God.” “Go and find your son, and take him to Thanatos where he will be tortured for the rest of his life.“ “We must keep this pure blooded God under wraps.” “Nobody must know of his true power.” “Not even I or you will know.” “Instead, we will get Thanatos to make sure he stays hidden forever.” “As for the other one, he may live, but I warn you.” “You can’t be allowed to make any more children.” “The Fates prophecy has come to pass, and I never thought my own son could birth such a monstrosity.” Ares didn’t listen, but he came down from Mount Olympus, and he took Deimos away while Aphrodite was asleep. She had begged and pleaded with Ares to leave him, but Ares was too loyal to Zeus, and Ares would not listen. Ares riding in his chariot swooped down from the sky and grabbed Deimos while him and Phobos were training. Once Ares had reached his destination, Ares dropped Deimos over the Pacific Ocean near a hydrothermal vent. Then, the Gods all stood around watching from Helios’ crystal ball. The Gods summoned the Titan from the great depths of the ocean. Thanatos grabbed Deimos and pulled him deeper and deeper, crossing over the rift into Tartarus, feeling as if he had received a wonderful offering from the Gods.

Thanatos showed no mercy to Deimos. Thanatos locked Deimos in a cage surrounded by lava. Deimos would cry out in agony praying to the Gods that someone would save him, but no one would answer. When Deimos showed signs of rebellion, Thanatos would cut into Deimos’ body opening a suture down the middle of him. He would begin by removing organs while Deimos was still alive, and everytime he removed one another would grow back. He went as far to cut out the heart of Deimos, and Deimos would lay idle for a while, and then it would grow back. Each time Thanatos removed an organ, they would grow back a little faster. When Deimos became angry, his eyes would glow red with fire; he was growing in strength everyday getting bigger and bigger. One day, when Thanatos came in to torture Deimos. He cried out to Athena. He was strung by his legs and arms, and Thanatos snarling would batter Deimos across his body with a whip. When Deimos was saying prayer to Athena, she answered. “Hush my child.” “Your time will come.” You will be the death of the deathless Gods. “Receive your punishment with open arms, and one day there will be a sign.” “Do not cry.” “Let it fuel your rage.” “Make it become a part of you that you will never forget, and you will be the strongest God of all.” “For in the fifth generation of man, there will be no end to death and sorrow.” “You are the God of Terror and Dread.”

When Thanatos came in to torture Deimos the next day, his attitude had changed. He had started to manipulate the pain into masochistic pleasure. He laughed at the things that Thanatos would do. They made him feel good on the inside with waves of endorphins and dopamine flooding his body. This angered Thanatos. He would try to quell Deimos’ rebellion, but soon Thanatos realized that Deimos was actually enjoying it. So, he continued to torture Deimos until one day Deimos spit on him, and he pulled Deimos from the cage and proceeded to bludgeon his head in an attempt to kill him, but Deimos was regenerating at an alarming rate. Once Thanatos thought he had effectively killed Deimos, Deimos played dead, and Thanatos turned his back to him. Deimos stood up conjuring his will, and he had managed to hide. Thanatos eventually realized Deimos was gone, and he threw himself into a maddening rage, searching every inch of Tartarus to find the so called God of Terror. Deimos hid next to the other prisoners of Tartarus, gasping in agony as if he was one of the tormented souls of the pit. Deimos prayed to Athena once more, and she told him to put his faith in the God of the forge and fire. Deimos prayed once more to Hephaestus, and Hephaestus loved him like his own son. Hephaestus and Athena filled Deimos with the “Wisdom of Creation”, and Deimos began forging weapons made from the pit of Tartarus. He thought of ways to effectively weaken and imprison Thanatos. He began by swaying other prisoners to rally around him. He called his loyal followers “The Legion of Dread”, and they followed him everywhere he went. He instilled the prisoners with hope; and in return, they granted him safe passage to and fro in Tartarus. He blended in well by painting dark marks around his eye and wearing tattered clothing like the other prisoners. His most trusted followers were Tantalus and Ixion. Tantalus was the king who tried to offer his sons to the gods during a feast, and Ixion was sent to Tartarus for trying to seduce Zeus’ wife Hera. Tantalus explained to Deimos that he had only done so because he had heard the story of Zeus eating Athena’s mother, and he wanted to make a valid offering that was befitting of a king of the Gods. Tantalus was the grandfather of king Agamemnon and Menelaos; and for that, Deimos vowed to bring Zeus to justice.

“Before Athena was born, Zeus received a prophecy stating he would bear strong and powerful children that would overthrow him. So, Zeus plotted to trick Métis, making her turn herself into a fly. He then swallowed her just as Cronos had done to him and his brothers, but Métis had already conceived a child, and this caused Zeus pain. So, he ordered Hephaestus to cleave his head to release the pain, and Athena leaped out of his head fully grown and dressed in armor. “That same cleave is what we will use to kill Thanatos”, said Tantalus. “We will then sound the battlecries of Ares, and a black smoke will fill the room like hysteria disorienting Thanatos where you will cleave his head open, creating enough time for us to escape.” “We will then enter the realm of Hades where the same fate will befall him.” “After that, Persephone will grant us safe passage into Elysium for freeing her of her captor.” “Thanatos carries a scepter that is fit enough to kill the God of the Underworld.” “So, you must retrieve it; so, that we may take the Underworld as did Hercules when he defeated Cerebus.”

When the day came of their rebellion, Thanatos was in his lair feasting on the spare parts of Deimos. “The Legion of Dread” began to slowly beat the drums of war picking up the pace as Deimos grew closer. Thanatos got up from his table and began to look around, but the room was too dark from the smoke that had filled Thanatos with hysteria. He knew that Deimos was going to attack, and this would be the first time the Titan of death had gotten his fill of terror. Tantalus and Ixion were on opposite sides of the room. They had made chains to bind his arms to the walls of Tartarus. Deimos leaping off of the table ran the cleave through the middle of Thanatos’ head, and spiders and maggots began to pour out. The spiders were unusual in the sense of how they were moving; and one by one, they began to attach together forming a gigantic dragon. Deimos was fearless in the eyes of the dragon, and “The Legion of Dread” stuck with him throughout it all. They stopped beating the drums and hundreds of tormented souls ran through the creature scratching and clawing at the beast, but the beast was powerful enough to overcome them all, and Deimos with his cleave charged towards the beast fearlessly. The dragon reached for Deimos and Deimos evaded, slicing into the dragon’s armor with his cleave. Deimos positioned himself behind the dragon while it was trying to fend off the legions attack where Tantalus and Ixion began to pull the chains off of Thanatos’ dead body and handed them to the souls that were pouring into the lair. The souls began wrapping the dragon pulling it down until they had it trapped it underneath their shackles, and Deimos let off a howling battle cry cleaving off the dragons arms first. By the time, the dragon was fully subdued. Deimos looked into the dragon’s eyes, and you could see the rage of fire in them. The dragon let off one last cry, and Deimos chopped off its head and held it up for the Gods that had received word from Hades that Tartarus had fallen. Deimos screaming at the top of his lungs said, “Hades, your up next!”