by RedQueenKay6
Chapter one The false promise. The marble of the temple felt like ice against on Cassius knees as I pressed my forehead to the floor. Prussia was a skeleton of a kingdom; I could almost hear the wind whistling through the empty ribs of my people. I was a King of dust, and the guilt was a mountain on my back. "Zeus," I choked out, my voice echoing in the hollow silence. "They are innocent. If a sacrifice is required to break this famine, take me. Use me. Just let them eat." The air didn't just change; it died. A heavy, electric silence smothered the room, and then a light—piercing and silver-blue—erupted from the center of the hall. Cassius, the voice was a vibration in my teeth, ancient and hungry. You are a rare creature. A King who actually loves his subjects. I shall grant your prayer. The granaries shall overflow. But I am bored with the heights of Olympus. I wish to feel the grit of the earth and the heat of a mortal heart for a single day. Give me your form, and your kingdom is saved. "Yes," I whispered, the word a final surrender. "Anything." The entry of the god was a brutal, silent conquest. It felt like my very essence was being folded and tucked into a small, dark box at the base of my skull. I was a ghost in my own house, watching through a divine haze as my body was reshaped—my muscles thickening into a Herculean build, my skin hardening, and armor of silver and blue shimmering into existence over my chest. Through eyes that now saw the world in terrifying, sharp detail, I watched the great doors swing open. Mirena stood there. She was as striking as a forest at dusk—long chocolate-brown hair, skin the color of warm gold, and eyes a sharp, piercing forest green. She moved with the calculated grace of a woman who had spent her life holding a scepter, not a flower. There was no warmth in her gaze, only a cold, efficient annoyance. To her, this was a diplomatic transaction, an irritating interruption to her duties as a ruler. She didn't believe in the "romance" of this union. She had zero time for the theater of kingship. I felt Zeus, the parasite in my soul, savor her defiance. He found her seriousness more intoxicating than any bubbly devotion. He moved my legs toward her, his—my—heavy boots thudding against the stone. "Mirena," the God said, using my voice but layering it with a resonant power that made the air tremble. She didn't flinch. She looked up at the thing wearing my face with a look that said she’d rather be anywhere else. But as he reached out and swept her into a princess carry, I felt a flicker of confusion break through her serious mask. It was the first time I had ever seen her truly caught off guard. In that moment, her hand instinctively went to my silver breastplate to steady herself. She turned to face the man she thought was Cassius, her green eyes searching mine for the King she knew—the kind, trusting man who had agreed to this political match. From the shadows of my mind, I watched as Zeus tilted my head down to meet her gaze. He wasn't looking at her as a husband, but as a predator fascinated by a new kind of prey. Mirena’s expression shifted, a subtle softening of her sharp features as she felt the strange, divine peace radiating from my body. She thought the "torment" of my role had finally broken, leaving behind a man who was finally, truly calm. I screamed in the silence of my ribs. She thought she was finally seeing the real Cassius, while I was forced to watch a god use my arms to hold the woman who would eventually pay the ultimate price for my trust. End of Cassius Point of view.
