16. The Day My Mother Stopped Giving Birth
The Day My Mother Stopped Giving Birth
was also the day all the Titans gathered
at our home. It was not strange
to see my aunts and uncles here.
Oceanus’s halls were used to
the footfalls of divinity.
What did surprise me was
the way they were gathered
in the great hall.
And beyond that,
how all my many cousins were also there.
It was only when my grandmother
Gaia entered with her majestic siblings,
my great-aunt Nyx, the Night,
her consort Erebus, the Darkness,
and great-uncle Eros, of Love,
that I realized something peculiar
was happening. Why had all the Gods
collected in my father’s halls?
I almost gasped when I saw
the ever-reclusive God-King
Kronos and his consort, Rhea,
in attendance. While the older Titans
and the Primordials sat in gold palatial chairs
by my father’s polished aquamarine throne,
my cousins, brothers, and sisters
stood before them
keeping a respectful distance
from their powerful seats.
I took the opportunity
to look closely at my uncle
Kronos. His amber eyes
were wild, yet tired.
Beside him Rhea appeared pale.
By now we had all heard the story
of how Kronos had ripped
the first of Rhea’s children
from her arms and devoured
the child whole. She had not
even had a chance to name the infant.
My heart twinged as I looked at her.
Once, her emerald eyes had sparkled
just like my mother’s – her sister.
Now they were dulled
like the darkest sea glass,
a cold numbness in them.
I pulled my eyes away from her
as my father began to speak.
He too looked worn, as he sometimes
did when he spent too long
making a particularly complex waterfall.
‘I know you are all surprised
to be summoned here.
However, our King,
my brother, has a declaration
that must be heard.’
My uncle, the God-King, rose,
nodding slightly at my father.
‘It has been agreed
that Oceanus and Tethys
will have no more children.’
Gasps and whispers rung out
from my cousins and siblings
at this announcement.
It was unheard of that one Titan
told another what to do.
However, at his words,
I let out a sigh of relief.
I was no longer to be midwife
to my mother’s many births.
But when I stole a glance
at my mother,
I saw her face was ashen,
there was bitter resentment
as she glared at Kronos.
I looked around the room
and understood sharply
what was happening.
My brothers and sisters and I
outnumbered our cousins
by a considerable amount.
The cold truth dawned on me.
We were a threat.
To a God-King who feared
being usurped by his own children,
the progeny of other Gods
were now also a concern.
But Kronos was not done.
‘After a long discussion,
it has also been decided
that the Potamoi will be
River Gods, blessed
with full divine powers.
And the Oceanids
will live to serve and nurture
what was within their brothers’
rivers and their father’s seas.’
None of my sisters reacted,
but I felt like my insides
had been crushed,
so much so that I forgot
both my place and my silence.
‘But this means
we have no divine powers!
Nothing but our immortality!’
I felt the hard stare of my father
and heard the hiss of an angry aunt.
But my words were spoken
with such indignation
that Kronos’s blazing eyes
found me
amongst all my siblings.