章 52: Love is Crazy

A little further ahead, and the two sisters of Psyche can already see the expansive garden where Zephyr was slowly preparing for a land. They could not believe it – the whole expanse of the entire area screamed riches and splendor. When they finally made a smooth landing, they were more astonished to see the grand mansion that was making them speechless.

'Who could the master of this house be?! Is this really the place where Psyche is?! This is crazy!'

"Well, my job here is done. And uh – just go inside, I think the lady is waiting for you." Zephyr told the women, whose backs were facing him. Feeling awkward, he decided to flee. But something else weighed him down. "What the - ?!"

"Yohoo ~ Lord Zephyr." Sayo winked at the God.

"Thanks for the ride." Rexis said so, and Zephyr can't believe that he didn't notice anyone else that was riding in his tailwind.

The two unknown mortals jumped from a rather high distance, albeit uncomfortably. But it seems that they don't mind the fall, and all Zephyr could do was just lay there motionless – still in utter disbelief that some mortals managed to hitch a ride from him. Worse, they were uninvited in the House of Eros. He could only watch as the two made their way towards the abode of the god.

Zephyr is fighting conflicting thoughts inside his mind. 'Should I stay or should I go?'

The commotion that was going on with Zephyr wasn't noticed by the two ladies, for they are currently in awe at what they are seeing. The pupils of their eyes dilated upon staring at the wonder of the bejeweled door that ever so slowly opened up to welcome them. Then, they heard someone speak, although they saw nobody else upon their entry.

"Welcome to our humble abode, please help yourself to our complimentary gifts inside the basket to your right. Enjoy your visit!"

'You call this a HUMBLE abode?!' They then turned their heads to the right to find the aforementioned basket, and their eyes widened some more upon seeing the kaleidoscope of colors from the precious gems and jewels that were inside the basket.

'Didn't the voice just say that we can help ourselves to those?' The two eyed each other, conversing wordlessly. Then, finally, a very familiar voice sounded from the hallway of the splendid house.

"My dearest sisters!" Psyche finally showed herself.

"Psyche!" There was genuine happiness in the voice of the two sisters, who immediately ran to Psyche and accepted her warm embrace. "Oh my sister, we miss you so!"

By now, Psyche had tears of joy from seeing her siblings. "And I miss you too!"

"Father is so worried." One of them asked.

"He was always looking for you." The other added.

"I know, I know and I'm sorry I wasn't able to visit. But I had several circumstances to attend to, which prevented me from communicating with you, but come, let's catch up and enjoy each other's company by the living room. Our servant makes excellent snacks!" She motioned for her sisters to follow her, and they walked towards the living room that was extravagantly adorned by some of the world's finest décor.

One of the siblings looked at her reflection on the marbled floor – she knew she had the looks, but looking at her sister right now, she can't help but compare herself to the glow that was evident in Psyche's face. It's as if her beauty alone wasn't enough, that the gods even decided to make her the wife of a great noble.

The other sibling's eyes wandered some more, trying to take everything in – all the riches and glory of Psyche's new house. She can't believe it – everything her is Psyche's too. Although she's very glad that she was able to marry a king, the repository of her husband is nothing compared to this. She can dare call herself lucky and wealthy, but she's just a speck of dust once placed next to Psyche.

They took a seat in the living room, and again, the sisters felt more insecure about themselves and about their status. Yes, they truly missed their sister. Their intention was to see her and make sure she's safe. However, they didn't sign up for this – for this.

This is an inalienable feeling, building up inside them, making them do things that aren't really part of the plan. They were blinded by this terrible feeling, and in silence, they came up with a common goal -chug the facts out of Psyche.

They sipped their tea from the immaculate cup, and ate the delicious finger-food that was served to them. They chatted merrily, just like the old times, until one of the sisters brought up the topic that Psyche was badly trying to avoid.

"So, Psyche…..how is your husband? How does he look like? Is he around? Can we meet him?"

Mythos Hideout

Tobias continued to scream from the mental torture that Melissa was doing to him, and Julius hated it. He may not have known the kid for long, but being one of his comrades in this journey made him somewhat like a younger brother to him. He cannot let the kid suffer at his expense.

For a while, Melissa paused on doing her task and gave Tobias a room for a breather. Then, Adam spoke once more to him. "Now, Son of Time, you will have to answer me."

"My name is Julius, dammit."

"Well, Kairo Julius Andreas, son of Alexandros Andreas, tell me, where did your father keep the Baetylus of Zeus?"

'Baetylus?' Julius thought. 'Why are we talking about the Baetylus of Zeus?'

"I don't know what you're talking about." That wasn't exactly true. He's not sure about wtf the guy wants with the Baetylus, but he remembered about the key that was stolen from his father on the day he was murdered. The key to their basement. If his instincts are correct, he have to play his cards right now.

The Baetylus of Zeus is a sacred stone found in the Omphalos (Navel), or literal center of the world. No one knew about where exactly it was placed, except for Rhea, who put it there prior to the conclusion of the Titanomachy. This stone is the one supposed to have been swallowed by Cronus in mistake for his infant son Zeus, for whom it had been substituted by Rhea.

Not later on, the Omphalos in Mt. Parnassus became the place where Apollo battled with Python, and when the God slayed the great serpent, he established a temple there and made it the home of the Oracle of Delphi.

Adam smiled, for he actually believed Julius. "So you don't know about it, do you?"

Julius only glared at him, and Adam decided to play some more and threw a look at Melissa, who once again began to torture Tobias. "AAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"STOP IT!" Julius tried to free himself from the shadow binds that was holding him back, but the grip of the thing was too tight.

Adam let out a careless laugh. "Well, it seems that you didn't know of the fact about your father travelling back to the past to steal the Baetylus of Zeus to destroy it in an attempt to thwart the Prophecy of Dodona. However, he failed to destroy the thing, though, and he hid it from us, who badly wanted it to fulfill our mission."

"WHAT?" Julius was flabbergasted from that crazy revelation. But how come? How come does his father knew about where the Baetylus is, when only Rhea is supposed to know about where it was exctly placed? Moreso, his father, travelling back in time? And what about Dodona?

The Oracle of Dodona. Ever since he met Apollo, Julius tried to remember the different Oracles that provided divinations and quests to the heroes Ancient Greece. There are five known Oracles, one of which is Dodona. Among all the five Oracles, this is the only one that wasn't affiliated to Apollo – hence the God of Truth had no control over it.

The Oracle of Dodona was attributed to none other than Rhea, the Ex Miss Universe. It is actually a Sacred Grove of Oak Trees. The Grove of Dodona was planted by the Titaness in the first days of the world, and were ancient even when the first generation of Olympians were born. It wasn't just a single tree, that's why many voices whisper whenever it makes a divination.

It was this Oracle who foretold Rhea about the Prophecy of Zeus, being the God who will overthrow her husband, Cronus, from his seat in the Universe and rule over Olympus one day. Dodona was the one who gave her the instructions on how to trick Cronus, by using a stone to substitute her son, and to ensure that Zeus will survive from his own father's tyrannical attitude.

Hence, in ancient times, the priests of Dodona would take every imaginable care of the trees and channeled the trees' voices by hanging wind chimes in their branches. Given proper care, the trees could divine the future, and therefore served as an Oracle of sorts. Without proper care, though, the voices of the trees would become unfocused and disharmonious, and the grove itself would eventually drive mortals to madness. It must still be noted, though, that Rhea had planted Dodona to serve as a benevolent force.

"What does it have to do with anything?" Although Julius was beginning to put two-and-two together, he knows he had to keep this conversation going, so that this blondie will forget to give orders for Tobias to be tortured. But Julius is honestly curious as well about the story behind the mention of the First and Oldest Oracle, and the significance of the Baetylus to it.

"Thanks to that moron Theodosius, the Grove of Dodona is no more in the modern times. Ever since all of the Sacred Oaks have been destroyed by his fire, more and more generations weren't aware of the First Oracle, until it was eventually forgotten."

Adam is actually referring to Theodosius I (Theodosius the Great) - the last emperor to rule over the United Roman Empire until he divided it into the Eastern and Western Empire in 395 A.D. He was known for closing all the ancient and pagan temples across the empire and officially prohibited pagan worship when he made Christianity the official religion. Theodosius also cut down and burned the last oak of the original Grove of Dodona.

"Listen carefully, Julius Andreas. I am about to tell you the significance of this Baetylus to the prophecy of the Oracle of Dodona for that pea-brain of yours."