The gods were all angered by the insolence of Prometheus and humanity, but Zeus's face remained calm. The King of the Gods summoned Hephaestus, the god of craftsmanship, and said, "Skillful craftsman, the Cyclopes have praised your artistry, saying your forging skills have surpassed theirs, and you shall become the god of crafts among the gods."
The craftsman god happily accepted Zeus's appointment, but Zeus's next words made the not-so-bright deity sense something was amiss.
"Prometheus's creations have offered us sacrifices. As King of the Gods, I too intend to bestow a gift upon humanity."
Zeus's voice was as gentle as the sea breeze. Those who knew the King of the Gods exchanged glances, all sensing a terrible aura of destruction.
Hephaestus could not refuse the King of the Gods' command and thus accepted the task. The craftsman god was to create a perfect woman and forge an indestructible box capable of holding suffering and sin.
The meticulous Hephaestus began to busy himself, traveling to every corner of the earth to gather materials.
Fair earth and pure spring water were mixed together to create a supremely beautiful female body. Brown earth outlined soft, beautiful long hair, black gems served as eyes, and crystal served as bones. At Zeus's request, the gods bestowed gifts upon the woman created by Hephaestus.
Aphrodite, the goddess of love, granted her beauty and a smile. Athena bestowed upon her reason and wisdom. Hera gave her the blessing of fertility. Demeter placed a wreath of abundance upon her head. Artemis shared her dexterity. Apollo gifted her a melodious voice. The gods' gifts endowed this woman with extraordinary charm, almost rivaling that of the goddesses.
Finally, Zeus stepped forward and bestowed upon the woman an insatiable curiosity for all things unknown. Unfortunately, the authority over souls rested with Prometheus. After his father Iapetus was imprisoned in the abyss, the foreseer was the only deity capable of bestowing souls upon inanimate objects.
This beautiful woman was named Pandora, meaning "all-gifted." This magnificent creation was placed beneath the golden apple tree in the garden, guarded by the King of the Gods' subordinate deities.
After Pandora was completed, Zeus took out the exquisite box forged by the craftsman god and said, "Oh gods, you have bestowed all goodness upon Pandora. Now I command you to place the opposite of those good things into the box."
"We shall use this as a wager to test whether humanity is truly worthy of salvation."
The gods cast all sorts of evils into the box. Ignorance, lies, hunger, and other twisted curses filled the box. Only Kanas, the master of disaster, placed evolution and fortitude within the box. Zeus then added chance, and finally, Athena placed a faint hope into the box. This was indeed the opposite of reason and wisdom; an absolutely rational person would not pursue faint hope.
The box was placed in the hands of Pandora's statue, quietly awaiting the day it would be opened.
In the days that followed, Zeus seemed to have forgotten Prometheus's offense and continued to distribute human faith among the gods.
The foreseer felt the impending disaster this gift would bring to humanity the moment Pandora was created. Uneasy, Prometheus deliberated and finally ventured to the garden on the divine mountain on a starless, moonless night.
The radiant golden apple tree illuminated the garden. The foreseer was surprised to find that Nike, the guardian of the garden, was gone, replaced by Eirene, the goddess of winter.
Prometheus emerged from the flowers and approached the goddess, asking, "Why do you allow Zeus to create this woman? Humanity was created from the minerals of the earth. I thought you tacitly approved of humanity's existence on earth."
Tyche, disguised, smiled gently, her fingers caressing the golden apple tree. "I thought we had an understanding. As for the reason, haven't I already told you?"
The goddess reached out and plucked the plumpest fruit from the tree, handing it to Prometheus. "Take this."
"Prometheus, the birth of humanity was the world's desire. The primordial gods all wished to see humanity flourish and grow strong. This aligns with all our interests."
It was precisely because of this that the foreseer dared to stand against the gods. He silently looked at the goddess leaning against the tree, listening to her reasons.
"You have created three generations of humans. Which generation do you feel most resembles the gods?"
Tyche's question rendered Prometheus silent. The golden humans were too kind, the silver humans too weak, and the bronze humans too warlike. No generation resembled the gods.
"I told you, let them explore on their own. Where their path leads is beyond our intervention. Destiny has already arranged everything."
"Where the sun shines, there will always be shadows. Nurtured by beauty and vice, humanity will forge its own path. This is their first step towards immortality."
Tyche pointed to the lifelike Pandora. "Make your decision. Will you let humanity be refined through suffering and hardship, or will they live a peaceful but short life under your protection?"
Prometheus looked at this woman who embodied both good and evil, reached out to touch her forehead, and bestowed upon this creation the missing soul.
The gods' gifts served their purpose. Pandora's mind was flooded with various knowledge and skills. Driven by curiosity, Pandora left the divine mountain and journeyed to the vast earth, bringing trials to humanity.
Watching Pandora's receding back, Tyche softly said, "For a long time to come, you will face the threat of Pontos. For your safety, the crime of stealing the golden apple will be pinned on you. I will have Uraeus guard the cave of Mount Caucasus, and you shall live in seclusion there."
Prometheus silently accepted the proposal.
"Foreseer, I have repaid your help. That trace of your divinity will become an avatar to house consciousness, or perhaps accompany humanity in a new guise." httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Long ago, when creating the Sirens, the foreseer had severed a trace of his divinity and entrusted it to Tyche to deal with potential crises.
This trace of divinity was sealed in a silver box and, according to the main god's instructions, was taken by Iris, the rainbow goddess, to Thyia, the nymph of the linden tree on the Isle of the Formless.
Following the main god's instructions, Thyia placed this trace of divinity within the accompanying linden tree to be reborn, and soon this new life would come into being.
Tyche had done all she could. If Prometheus later chose to oppose Tyche, this avatar born from divinity would become Tyche's means of restraining Prometheus. With the support of Tyche and Zeus, he would replace Prometheus's divine position and godhead. And the foreseer's protective confinement would then be a confirmed guilt.