Page 5 of Hephaestus
I limped my way to their abode and struggled to make my way up their gargantuan marble staircase to the tall entrance doors of their palace. Two of their stationed guards simply nodded at me and opened it. The place had not changed one bit. Everything was pristine white and glossed. I was able to hear a clamor of commotion in the distance of the palace. Therefore, I made my way towards the source of the sounds.
Eventually, I arrived at the dining hall doors. I opened the doors barely ajar to get a peek into the room. There was a lively crowd of gods and goddesses feasting on the ambrosia and wine of Dionysus. They were engaged in laughter and what seemed like joyous conversation. Seeing others in such good spirits only lifted mine up as well. It gave me even more confidence to enter the dining hall.
Everyone was so wrapped up in their own discussions and food and drinks that they failed to acknowledge my presence. I was able to recognize Hera and Zeus at the very central table of the room, drinking from golden bejeweled goblets. I passed some of the tables, weaving my way between some of the occupants. But soon, I found my leg was tremoring and beginning to give out. I fell right to the ground with a loud thud.
The moment I stumbled and crashed to the floor, a hush fell over the room as everyone’s attention began to focus on me. I struggled to stand and regain my balance. Once I stood, I saw everyone’s eyes locked in with mine. A look of shock was expressed on each and every single one of their faces. Some of them held their hands over their mouths to utter an unmistaken gasp of horror if I ever heard one.
Hera abruptly stood up from her chair. “H-Hephaestus!? Is that you!?”
“Yes. It’s me. I have returned,” I declared.
The other gods and goddesses then began to immediately whisper to one another. Hera turned her fixated gaze from me to catch wind of the gossip now occurring throughout the room. Her face, that was full of shock, instantly turned into an expression of scorn. She rose from her seat and approached me.
The silence that lingered in the room remained in effect. Hera did her best to keep her composure as she leaned over to intimately whisper in my ear. “I thought I told you not to return until you became more handsome.”
“No,” I corrected her, not bothering to keep my voice down so that our verbal exchange was private. “You told me to remain on Lemnos for ten years until I could come back here.”
Everyone’s eyes widened and bulged in the room, stunned that I had gone against the Queen of the Gods and disrespected her in such a way by stating that she was wrong.
“That is not what I said, you hideous liar! How dare you defy me!?” she screeched so that her entire audience could hear her. “I’ll teach you a lesson for such disobedience!”
“But I’m not lying. You’re the liar!” I seethed back.
“That’s it! We’re done here!” Hera shouted, lunging at me.
Just as she did ten years ago, she reached for my elbow and pulled me along, out of the dining hall. She must have cast some spell on me, for I grew weak and limber, unable to fight off her tug against my arm. The other gods and goddesses followed behind us with great intrigue, wondering what was happening.
Before I knew it, we were passing the long halls, heading outside with Hera shouting obscenities in my ringing ears. She continued to drag me to the very edge of a cliff that overlooked the world below. We then paused at the ledge.
Hera spun around to see the other gods and goddesses had caught up to us and were bearing witness to this intense scene. “I want this to be a lesson toeveryone! Not just Hephaestus!“ she shouted to the crowd. “This is what happens when you provoke the Queen of the Gods!”
She then turned back around to face me. “I told you not to return to Mount Olympus until you became more handsome. You are still as hideous as the day I gave birth to you, and I warned you that Mount Olympus is not a place for monsters like you!”
Hera reached her hand beneath my armpit and held my back in her palm firmly. Then she did the unthinkable. She propelled me forward, throwing me off the cliff. I flew in the air and then fell, descending off Mount Olympus.
It wasn’t until I crashed down into the land below that I felt scorching pain rip through my entire body. The pain was so intolerable, I found myself instantly fading to blackness.
Chapter 3
Arrogant
Prideful
Conceded
Selfish
Vengeful
Licentious
These are words that describe all the Olympian Gods. Except for me, that is. I vowed to never be as cruel as Zeus, his wife, and all of their selfish children. If Zeus’s or Hera’s blood flowed through your veins, you were destined to be wicked.
I never really fit in with the rest of them. If anything, I preferred mortals to the gods and goddesses. Humans, for the most part, have empathy, care for one another and, above all things, can be completely unselfish, at least more so than the Olympians. I grew to love and value the relationships that mortals had with one another, especially the love that existed between those of the same family—those that share the same blood. There’s something to be said about the bond between a mother and her son, or the protection a father has for his daughter. Not to mention the camaraderie and companionship that is so tangible between two siblings. My passion for family is what ultimately led me to becoming the God of the hearth, family, and the home.
At first, I had harnessed the power of fire, but being a God of fire had no meaning for me. Once Zeus bestowed me with my wish to be the God of all things domestic, I knew I had found my calling.
For the most part, I resided on Mount Olympus in my own palace. It was much humble compared to the homes of Zeus, Hera, Aphrodite, and Ares to name a few of the gods with such ostentatious tastes.
