The Time of Zeus Book 5: the Coup
Copyright© 2025 by Carlos Santiago
Chapter 14: The Plan
“Run it for me. Don’t leave anything out. Give me the big picture.”
— Roman Nagel (as portrayed by Suzy Eddie Izzard), Ocean’s Thirteen (2007). Written by Brian Koppelman and David Levien. Directed by Steven Soderbergh. Produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, and Section Eight Productions. Copyright © 2007 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved.
Morning came to Olympus with an unusual dawn. The daybreak was bright and warm; In fact, it was such a mild morning that there was not so much as a dingy overcast.
Athena stood at the window of Hera’s throne room. One by one, they had come as they had been gathered.
Apollo slouched in a marble seat near the back of the chamber, which Athena found comical as he was the one who usually heralded the sun. His duties required he be awake early, yet giving Helios run of the sun chariot must have exhausted poor Apollo.
Poseidon was quiet and contemplative. This, Athena found unusual. He was usually far more boisterous. A blue light seemed to come off his tattoos along his arms and shoulders, but there was no hum of magic, so Athena thought little of it. However, in his tunic of blue and silver, he appeared more a king than the tired, Apollo.
Hestia sat near Hera. seemed to find a way to make herself look as small as possible, but Athena knew better than to underestimate any god or goddess that participated in the Great War. No matter how small or demure Hestia was perceived to be, she was a fighter through and through.
Hera was poised upon her throne. This might be one of the last times that she would be able to cross one leg over the other on the chair of power.
“Thank you all for coming,” she said, turning to face them all. “I know each of you takes a great risk by being here and by committing to what we shall need to do, but the time we discuss how this ends.”
She walked slowly toward the center of the chamber. Her golden, armored sandals clacked against the floor as she spoke. Her gray, storming eyes mirrored that of her father.
“All that we do will wait until after humanity is given breath.”
At first, no one spoke.
“But why?” Apollo asked. “What do father’s novelties have to do with this plan?”
“Prometheus has been working long and hard on humanity, but this is Primordial Magic. When Zeus blows life into them, it will extract a physical toll on him, and will leave him vulnerable. In this weakened state, he will return to Olympus and go to his chambers. That is when we will each individually act.”
“Primordial Magic?” Poseidon scoffed. “They’re clay dolls, nothing more.”
“They are more than that now,” Athena replied, holding back her temper. “Prometheus has layered the magic of their creation to be something complicated. His enchantments have been layered over time, so his exhaustion was small.”