"Asclepius, did you steal the soul of the mortal Linos? Did you also use the blood of the Gorgon goddess to bring him back from the dead?"
The King of the Gods' fury exploded in the temple. Zeus did not have much affection for this grandson. His mother, the goddess of fame, Clymene, had been the wife of Iapetus, the god of souls. Iapetus had, in an attempt to help Crius, the god of growth, vie for the throne of the King of the Gods, designed to hinder Zeus.
After her husband was cast into the abyss, Clymene was not affected. She was also one of the Oceanids. Out of respect for his mother and maternal grandparents, Zeus granted his aunt the respect and treatment she deserved. Even the rebellion of Atlas, the god of strength, did not shake Clymene's glory.
The goddess of fame was also self-aware and kept a low profile thereafter, rarely appearing on the divine mountain.
"King of the Gods, my grandfather who symbolizes life! Please listen to me. I dare not harbor any thoughts of contending with you for the origin of life, nor do I possess the power to grant mortals resurrection. All I desire is to glimpse the power of raising the dead to ascend to divinity, and it will not shake your authority."
"I brought Linos's soul from the Underworld, and I am willing to accept punishment. However, I did not grant Linos divine blood that resists death. His body was that of a human who had recently died. I merely fulfilled my promise to bring him back to the earth."
The King of the Gods could not fully accept Asclepius's explanation. "Stealing a soul destined for the Underworld and stuffing it into a body that does not belong to it! Asclepius, you have disrupted the order of life and death, and you shall be punished for it!"
Zeus raised the thunderbolt in his hand and cast it down. This weapon, forged by the Cyclopes with the divinity of the sky, split the god of medicine's body.
Apollo leaped up, intending to intervene, but was stopped by his sister Artemis.
"My infatuated brother, how dare you obstruct the punishment of the King of the Gods? Look closely at your son; he has not perished."
The goddess of nature was correct. Asclepius, split in two, underwent trials, and Zeus opened the mysteries of the life domain to him. The god of medicine's aura was rapidly growing.
Fine lightning coursed over his severed body, seemingly stimulating his life force. The god of medicine's face showed no pain. From each of his broken halves, two goddesses emerged. One, inheriting the divine status of the god of medicine, possessed a lesser divinity. She joyfully rose and said, "Respected grandfather, thank you for your generosity."
Zeus nodded and said, "From this day forward, you shall be Epione, the goddess of soothing and health."
The god of medicine, having changed gender, also changed his name without surprise. He bowed and quickly accepted his new identity as a goddess.
The other goddess was not so fortunate. She possessed only the strength of a minor divinity, being the goddess of vitality and youth.
The goddess, also possessing Asclepius's consciousness, looked at Epione. "I am Hebe, symbolizing the most beautiful stage of youth in life."
The rebirth of the two goddesses did not cause much of a stir. Only their father, Apollo, felt troubled. Not only did his son become a daughter, but he also doubled.
This made the god of inspiration somewhat melancholic, as his daughters would now be in danger of being snatched away.
Meanwhile, Heracles was still awaiting the resurrection of Linos. He only realized what had happened when the decaying body had turned to mere bones. In a fit of rage, Heracles stormed into the temple and smashed the statues of the two deities.
Apollo's curse took immediate effect. Whenever Heracles became agitated, he would go mad. In a fit of irrationality, he killed his friend Iphitos during a contest.
This caused Heracles immense pain. The guilt of accidentally killing his teacher and friend overwhelmed the mighty hero. He left his homeland once more, ignoring his parents' pleas, abandoning the honor of a prince, and sinking into despair. To atone for his sins, he sold himself as a slave to Omphale, the queen of Lydia, hoping to find peace.
At this point, something occurred that rarely drew Tyche away from the Invisible Islands.
The most outstanding daughter of the friendly Sea God, Thetis, was to marry the mortal king Peleus!
Peleus's lineage was no less than that of Perseus. He was the grandson of Poseidon and Aegina, and the son of Aeacus and the Nereid Psamathe. None of his ancestors were mortals. With the support of his grandfather and mother, he established a prosperous city-state.
The conceptual sea gods were severely weakened and could only retreat to the barren lands of the distant seas. This was entirely different from the situation when Pontus was in power. Initially, they harbored resentment and vented their anger on their brother's wife, Electra, the goddess of tranquil seas.
However, Thaumas, the marvel of the sea who cherished his wife, could not ignore his wife's plight. He engaged in a fierce conflict with Ceto, the goddess of sea dangers, and it was only through the mediation of Nereus that the fighting ceased.
But Thaumas could no longer get along with his siblings. During the battle between Pontus and Tyche, Thaumas's refusal to appear had already greatly displeased the conceptual sea gods. This conflict led to Thaumas being ostracized as a rebel. Thaumas resolutely took his wife and lived in seclusion, no longer concerning himself with the sea gods' disputes.
The departure of the tranquil goddess Electra further worsened the situation for the conceptual sea gods. Electra was one of the tranquil deities, and the deities who shared the divine office of tranquility with her included the sisters of Leto and Hypnos, the god of sleep. This group spanned the heavens, seas, and underworld, a power that could not be compared to Poseidon's nominal title as king of the deep sea.
Electra's identity was also quite delicate; she was Tyche's elder sister and the aunt of Zeus and Cannas!
The queen of the gods, Leto, and the god of sleep, Hypnos, would not disregard this goddess's opinions. With her minor divinity, Electra served as a lubricant between the conceptual sea gods, the lineage of the Oceanids, and the gods of the divine mountains. This was also one of the reasons why Athena did not pursue them to the death.
The Oceanids, resentful of their sister's mistreatment, requested Athena to intervene and avenge Electra.
The goddess of strategy was locked in a fierce struggle with Poseidon and could not spare the time to deal with the conceptual sea gods. However, she was very interested in this endeavor. After all, Poseidon was still the nominal king of the deep sea, and suppressing the conceptual sea gods would undoubtedly diminish Poseidon's prestige.
Nereus was the first to notice the actions of the Oceanid lineage. For the sake of survival, he could only bow to Poseidon first to seek self-preservation.
Thus, Poseidon's title as king of the deep sea unexpectedly gained some weight, allowing it to be openly trumpeted as an honor.
The two main deities clashed over the faith of a coastal city-state. Both Athena and Poseidon exerted all their efforts to become the patron deity of this city-state. This not only concerned their own dignity but also the interests of their respective groups. How could the two deities, bearing the name of leaders, not give their all?