Cronus and the Threads of Dread

by Joan Holub

  Zeus reached Hestia first and helped her to her feet. She pulled strands of web from her light brown hair.

  “Thirsty,” she said, her voice hoarse.

  Zeus scanned the scene. Athena was helping Ares, Poseidon had Hades, and Apollo had Demeter.

  “Let’s get everyone back to the cave,” Zeus called out. “I’ll start a fire. And, Poseidon, we need water!”

  Hestia smiled weakly at Zeus. “I may have spent the last two days trapped in a cocoon, but I can still make fire, thank you very much.”

  Zeus smiled back. “Of course.”

  As they gathered by the cave, he felt overwhelmed with happiness. The nine Olympians were together again!

  “Is everyone okay?” Zeus asked as Poseidon raised a bubbling spring from the ground.

  Hades took a deep drink of water and then wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “Yeah. Being in a cocoon was weird. Kind of like sleeping, only I knew what was happening around me.”

  Red-haired Demeter nodded. “It wasn’t so bad. But I’m glad you saved us.”

  Ares’s red eyes blazed. He waved his spear. “Where are those spiders? Let me at ’em!”

  “Too late. Athena turned them all to stone,” Hera told him.

  Ares looked surprised. “Athena? No way!”

  Athena held out her locket. “That big spider, Arachne, stole my cleverness. But it’s back here in this locket!”

  Hades smiled at her. “In the nick of time. Thanks.” He rubbed his belly. “Do you guys have any food? I’m so hungry, I could eat a spider!”

  “Ew!” said Hestia, wrinkling her nose. “No way. But I’m pretty hungry too.”

  Apollo looked into his pack. “I don’t think we have much left except for some potatoes.”

  Athena snapped her fingers. “Oh, I know what would go great with potatoes!”

  She took off the aegis and placed it on the ground, carefully covering it with her cloak.

  “Aegis, remember that tree I invented?” she asked. “Let’s make another olive tree!”

  Just like before, a small tree burst from the ground. Athena picked some of the oval, black fruits from its gnarled branches.

  “Um, wasn’t that invention kind of a failure the first time?” Poseidon asked.

  “That’s only because I wasn’t clever enough then to know what to do with the olives,” Athena said. She put them down on a flat rock and started crushing them with another rock. Dark oil pooled around them.

  “This oil is great for making fire, and we can pour it on the potatoes after they’re cooked,” she explained. “It’s delicious.”

  Poseidon stuck his finger into the olive oil and licked it off.

  “I have to admit, it’s not bad,” he said.

  “And the olives will taste good too,” she said. “Watch.” She took the Thread of Cleverness from her locket. “Spell ‘pickled,’ ” she told it.

  Instantly the thread formed the word “pickled,” and the olives on the tree soon changed. Instead of being hard and shiny, they looked soft and juicy.

  “They still have pits,” she warned, handing one to everyone. They all began chewing the olives.

  “Mmm, this is delicious,” said Demeter. “Thank you!”

  “I’ll get the potatoes onto the fire,” Apollo offered.

  Soon they were all munching on fried potatoes with crushed, pickled olives. Hestia, Demeter, Hades, and Ares were full of questions about what the others had been up to.

  “I’ve already written a song about it,” said Apollo. Then he picked up his lyre and began to sing.

  “Four were captured and five were spared.

  The remaining five were very scared.

  But on they went, to save the four,

  Knowing that dangers were in store.

  In sticky webs they all got stuck,

  But Hera’s feather brought them luck.

  Then the spider army found the five.

  It did not look like they’d survive.

  Until Athena found her thread,

  And every spider wound up dead!”

  Everyone laughed and clapped. Their bellies were full and the fire was dying, so they went inside the cave to sleep. In the morning Zeus was up first as usual. He went outside to greet the sunrise.

  Then he froze. In the daylight the damage Athena had done to the web was obvious. Most of it had been torn down. Now he could see what the web had been hiding.

  Somebody was building an enormous temple high in the clouds!

  CHAPTER NINE

  Follow the Leader

  Guys! You’ve gotta see this!” Zeus called, and the other Olympians swiftly joined him.

  “Is that . . . a temple?” Hades asked, unbelieving.

  “It sure looks like it,” Poseidon said. “A temple in the clouds.”

  They all gazed at the amazing sight for a moment. Impossibly, the huge marble temple sat on top of fluffy white clouds without falling. It was bigger than any temple on earth, with a domed roof and columns taller than the tallest trees. Long strands of web still hung from the clouds around it. Now they sagged low, some of them almost touching the ground.

  “We met some people who told us a rumor,” Zeus said. “A rumor that Cronus was using the giant webs to hide something he was building in the sky. I guess this is it.”

  “Why does he need a temple in the sky?” Hestia wondered.

  “Because he thinks he’s better than everybody else,” Poseidon replied. “He wants to look down on all of us.”

  “Pythia told us that we would have to face Cronus soon,” Zeus reminded everyone. “I guess now is the time.”

  Everyone was quiet for a second. Ares spoke up first.

  “Let’s fight him! We’ll take him down!” he yelled.

  “Calm down. I mean, are we really ready?” Hestia said. “Half of us just got captured by spiders. We’re weak. How are we supposed to fight King Cronus and his army of Cronies?”

  “With our weapons!” Ares cried, shaking his spear.

  “We’ve still got half a day’s walk before we stand below the temple,” Zeus said. “Let’s get moving.”

  The trip to the temple was made easier by the strands of the web. As they each grabbed a strand and began to climb, many of the Olympians were curious to learn more about Athena. As they huffed and puffed their way upward, they spoke every now and then.

  “I still can’t believe you’re smart now,” Poseidon said bluntly.

  Athena shrugged. “Yeah, I guess I was acting pretty silly before.”

  “So, just how smart are you now?” Hades asked. “Like, do you know the square root of 86,754?”

  “Hey, that’s my lucky number!” Poseidon quipped, grinning.

  Athena thought briefly. “It’s 294.5403198 . . . There are more digits. How far do you want me to go?”

  “That’s awesome!” said Hades.

  “I’ve got one for you! What’s faster? A falcon or a golden eagle?” Apollo asked Athena.

  “Well, if you’re talking about a peregrine falcon, it would beat a golden eagle when they’re both diving for prey,” Athena replied.

  Hestia clapped her hands. “This is fun! Athena, how much lava can a volcano hold?”

  “Well, it depends on the size of a volcano,” Athena replied. “But volcanoes don’t actually hold lava. The hot liquid rock beneath the surface is called magma. It’s not called lava until the volcano spews it out.”

  “Cool!” said Poseidon. “Zeus, come on. Ask her something.”

  “Thanks, anyway,” Zeus said, quickly climbing ahead.

  He knew he should have been happy that Athena had recovered her cleverness. But he couldn’t help feeling a little jealous.

  I’m supposed to be the leader of the Olympians, he thought. Pythia said so. I might not have liked the idea at first, but I’m getting used to it. So, what happens if everybody decides that Athena is a better leader than I am? Just because she’s smarter?

  Zeus tried to shake off the thought. He
had much bigger things to worry about. Really big things. Like King Cronus and his Cronies.

  As Zeus had guessed, it took the Olympians about half a day to get close to the temple in the clouds. Now that they were near, the temple seemed even bigger. Strands of web hung down it, some of them still touching the ground.

  Hera looked at Zeus.

  “Okay, Boltbrain,” she said. “What now?”

  Everyone was looking at him. His brothers and sisters: Hera, Hestia, Demeter, Hades, and Poseidon. His friends: Apollo, Ares, and now Athena. They expected him to decide what they should do.

  I am a leader, Zeus realized. Now I’ve got to act like one.

  He looked up at the temple. The thick, fluffy clouds surrounding it made it hard to see what was going on up there.

  “We climb,” Zeus said. “But for all we know, there could be an army of Cronies waiting for us when we get to the top. So we need a plan.”

  “I could put on my helmet and scout it out up there before we all go,” Hades suggested.

  Zeus shook his head. “No. I’m not losing anybody again. We stick together.”

  “Well, then, I’ll send my feather,” Hera said.

  Zeus nodded. “Good idea,” he said, and Hera sent her feather to spy on the temple in the clouds. When it came back to her, she looked into its eye.

  “You were right, Zeus!” she said. “There’s an army of Cronies up there. They’re lined up in rows. In battle formation!”

  Zeus frowned. “Then we’ve got to hit them hard right from the start. Let’s take stock of our weapons.”

  “I’ve got my torch,” offered Hestia.

  Demeter clutched the pouch of seeds that dangled from her belt. “I’ve got my seeds, but I’d hate to have to use them in battle. It’s much nicer when they can grow crops for people.

  Ares jumped in front of her. “The Cronies will give up when they see my Spear of Fear!”

  “The Cronies are way bigger than your spear,” Hera pointed out. She held up her feather. My Feather of Eyes can bring us luck.”

  “We’re gonna need it,” said Poseidon. “Even though Bolt and my trident are a pretty powerful combo.”

  Apollo shrugged. “I’ve got a pouch full of stone spider rocks. That’s something.”

  “And I’ve got my aegis, which invents things,” Athena said. “And my Thread of Cleverness.”

  An idea popped into Zeus’s mind. “Athena, how strong is that thread?”

  “It’s pretty much unbreakable,” she replied. “Legend says that only a magic blade can cut through it. And I’ve never heard of anyone having such a blade.”

  Zeus grinned. “Then I think I’ve got an idea. Athena and Apollo, it involves you.”

  Zeus told the Olympians his plan. They put it into action, first finding sturdy long web strands hanging down from the clouds right next to one another.

  “Okay, Athena, Ares, Hestia, Demeter, and Hera, you’ll line up on the left. Apollo, Poseidon, Hades, and I will line up on the right. You know what to do.”

  “First, a circle,” Hera suggested. The nine Olympians formed a circle and each put a hand into the center.

  “Gooooooo, Olympians!” they cheered, raising their arms into the air.

  Then Athena and Apollo each grabbed on to a web strand and began the climb to the clouds. The others followed, one at a time. Just before they reached the top, Athena and Apollo stopped. Athena took the Thread of Cleverness from her locket and held one end. Then she gave the other end to Apollo.

  “All right, everyone,” Zeus called out softly. “Let’s do this!”

  Athena and Apollo climbed on top of the cloud. Still holding the ends of the Thread of Cleverness, Athena ran to the left and Apollo ran to the right. The rest of the Olympians climbed up behind them.

  Rows and rows of huge Cronies were waiting for them on top of the clouds, not more than a hundred yards away.

  Each half-giant Crony was as tall as a willow tree. Polished iron helmets protected their heads, and each one held a long spear in his massive fist. With a thunderous battle cry they charged at the line of Olympians facing them.

  “All right, Olympians. Charge!” Zeus yelled.

  On his command, Ares, Hestia, Demeter, and Hera ran left to join Athena. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades ran behind Apollo.

  Before the first line of Cronies could change direction and follow, they ran right into the Thread of Cleverness. Stretched out between Athena and Apollo, it was nearly invisible.

  “Whoooooaaaaaaa!”

  The first line of Crony soldiers tripped over the thread and tumbled right off the clouds!

  “Yes!” Zeus cheered.

  The second line of Cronies was right behind them. They tripped too, and dozens more Cronies went tumbling off the clouds.

  “This is too easy!” Poseidon told Zeus.

  Then the third line of soldiers charged. By now they had begun to realize something was wrong. A few of them tumbled over the thread. Others tried to quickly stop, and they bumped into one another. One big Crony bumped right into Apollo, knocking him down.

  “Noooooo!” Apollo cried as the Thread of Cleverness slid from his fingers. The thread instantly coiled back into Athena’s hand.

  Zeus had known the thread wouldn’t take out all of the Cronies, but it had been a good start.

  “Next wave!” Zeus yelled.

  Hestia jumped in front of Athena, and Poseidon jumped in front of Apollo. Hestia aimed her torch at the feet of the approaching Cronies. Fire sprang up where she pointed.

  “Ow! Ow! Ow!” they screamed, jumping up and down. More of them leaped off the cloud to get away.

  Swoooooooosh! Poseidon shot a blast of water from his trident, knocking a bunch more off.

  “Okay. Now, everyone!” Zeus commanded.

  Ares shot his Spear of Fear at the Cronies. The spear zipped through the line of attackers, knocking the spears out of their hands. Hades put on his helmet and ran around the Cronies, kicking them hard in the shins.

  “Ow! Ow! Ow! Quit it!” they yelled. But when they looked down, they couldn’t see anyone attacking them.

  Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Hera and Demeter hurled rocks Apollo had given them as hard as they could, aiming for the Cronies’ knees.

  Zap! Zap! Zap! Zeus hurled lightning bolt blasts at the Cronies, knocking them down one by one.

  The wave of Cronies was thinning fast.

  We’re winning! Zeus thought in excitement. It was time for one big move. . . .

  “Olympians, together!” he called out, holding Bolt above his head.

  The other Olympians ran to him, holding up their magical objects too. Once they combined, their power would be enough to knock out the rest of the Cronies. At least Zeus hoped it would.

  Just as the objects were about to touch, a dark shadow fell across them. The Olympians looked up.

  A giant man twice as tall as the Cronies loomed over the Olympians. A gold crown sat on top of his bushy black hair. He grinned, revealing a smile with a missing front tooth. The Olympians had knocked that tooth out a while back.

  “Well, if it isn’t the Olympians,” he bellowed, laughing. “I was hoping you’d show up.”

  “King Cronus!” Zeus cried.

  CHAPTER TEN

  King Cronus

  The evil king picked Zeus up with one hand, then held him close in front of his face.

  “Welcome Zeus, the fearless leader of the Olympians,” he said in a mocking voice.

  “Bolt!” Zeus yelled, and his magical weapon zapped Cronus with electric energy. The Titan flinched but didn’t lose his grip. With his free hand, he grabbed the lightning bolt from Zeus and tossed it away.

  “Enough of this child’s play,” Cronus said. “I need to have a word with you.”

  Zeus’s legs dangled from Cronus’s hand as the king stomped toward the temple. Zeus looked down and saw the other Olympians were still fighting off the remaining Cronies below. He hoped they’d be okay.

  Cronus stopped in
front of the temple and waved his free hand toward it.

  “Welcome to my kingdom!” he said, in a booming voice. “I call it Mount Titan, and it shall be a home for immortals—Titan immortals.”

  Zeus had met many of the Titans. Most of them had been horrible, nasty, and cruel.

  “So why are you telling me?” he asked in the bravest voice he could manage.

  “Because unlike your other puny companions, you’ve got something special,” Cronus said. “So leave them behind. Stay here on Mount Titan. We can rule together!”

  Zeus’s mind was spinning. Why would Cronus want an Olympian, his enemy, to rule with him? It must be some kind of trick.

  Play along, he told himself. See what you can find out.

  “That’s an interesting idea,” Zeus said. “It’s pretty cool up here. I like it.”

  “Pretty cool? It’s magnificent! The finest kingdom ever created!” Cronus boomed.

  “Sure, of course it is,” Zeus said quickly. “So, what happens if I join you? What happens to the other Olympians? And the mortals down there on Earth?”

  “They shall live to serve us!” Cronus declared. “We shall enslave each and every one. Nothing shall stop us!” Then he let out an evil laugh. “Ha-ha! Ha-ha!”

  Zeus nodded. “Well, in that case . . .” He held out a hand. “Bolt! Return!”

  Bolt instantly returned to Zeus’s hand. Using Bolt like a sword, he brought it down hard on Cronus’s huge wrist. Crying out in pain, Cronus opened his hand, and Zeus tumbled out. Quickly he tucked Bolt back into his belt and grabbed on to the side of the temple, stopping his fall. Then he pulled himself up onto the roof.

  “Foolish boy!” Cronus thundered, his black eyes flashing. He swatted at Zeus, but Zeus whipped Bolt out again and zapped the Titan’s hand. With a growl of rage Cronus made a fist and moved to smash him. But Zeus darted out of the way just in time.

  Boom! Cronus’s fist slammed down. The temple roof shook wildly, and Zeus could see the marble cracking beneath his feet. He tried to scramble down from the roof, but Cronus grabbed him by the collar.

  “How dare you reject my offer?” he asked, holding Zeus up in the air again. “That was your one chance. Now I shall destroy you, just as I shall destroy all the other Olympians!”