Hera's Melancholy
The queen of Olympus, Hera—Zeus's lawful wife—is a lofty goddess whom no one dares to treat lightly. Not even Zeus himself can handle her divine authority lightly. Among the goddesses, and even among the major gods, there are none who follow her closely, and the gods on earth revere her endlessly as Zeus's consort, making her a formidable deity.
Yet the things she protects tend to be ignored.
"Stay still! Hehehe, you've got yourself a fine wife now!"
"Kyaaak! Please spare me, I already have a fiancée!"
"That's me, you wench. The one you met was my stand-in, hehehe. I'll take good care of you, so don't worry!"
"H-how could that..."
Lately, bride kidnappings were trending on earth. Not the consensual kind between two parties, but actual cases where men abducted women and made them wives. They looked crude, but since they took the form of marriage, Hera claimed them as part of her domain too.
No, if it were just abductions, the situation might have been better.
"You wench!"
"Kyaaak?!"
"What's this slop for dinner? Are you insulting your husband!!!!"
"D-dear, I was wrong! Kyaaaak?!"
This was ancient Achaea, where "wife" was often just another word for a woman a husband could freely beat. Of course, not many poleis took that for granted yet; relationships between men and women still generally involved mutual respect to some degree. But as Zeus seized hegemony over the world and the Titan era faded, patriarchal systems finally took root, and women's rights began to plummet.
Hera, the patron goddess of women's entire lives, was herself suppressed by her husband Zeus. She could only gripe a bit about him treating marriage lightly and fathering illegitimate children. What could be said for other women's rights, then?
"Sigh..."
Hera was widely known as the protector of marriage and family, but she was also a chimo-sin—a terrestrial mother goddess—overseeing women's lives from birth to death. Goddess of motherhood, protector of women. Women's entire lifespans fell under Hera's purview.
However, Zeus only respected her domain of marriage and family. He was utterly merciless when it came to women's lives.
Influenced by Zeus's behavior, all his daughters who rose to ministerial ranks took vows of virginity, forgoing marriage entirely. Even her own sister Hestia had done the same. So, despite being the queen of Olympus and the goddess of marriage, family, and women's protection, Hera had no allies on Olympus.
Demeter was the only one, barely.
"Demeter can't stand up to Zeus boldly either, since her husband is the lesser god Iasion."
Indeed, among Cronus's daughters, the only one who married was Demeter, and her husband was the lesser god Iasion. Iasion was originally a demigod created by Zeus, the handsomest man in the world at the time. His stunning looks had utterly captivated the goddess Demeter, leading to a happy marriage.
Hera herself had blessed their union, even though it was between a goddess and a demigod. But Zeus, in his cruelty, refused to tolerate Demeter—mother of his child—marrying a demigod. He struck down his own son with a thunderbolt and only revived him after Demeter threatened to quit her duties, claiming it was for the world's balance.
"Still leaving him as a lesser god who might die from a thunderbolt again."
Curiously, lesser gods could die from thunderbolts, and while powerful curses wouldn't kill them, they could turn them into mere trees or vines. So even as a god, Iasion's life and death remained in Zeus's hands.
Demeter knew this full well and had begged Zeus many times, but he stubbornly refused to elevate Iasion to a full minister. Zeus never wanted a male god who could challenge him—not even his own sons.
"He always resents Ares and Hephaestus too. Our children..."
Hephaestus and Ares were the proud legitimate heirs of Olympus, born to Hera and Zeus. But Hephaestus had sided with Hera and been cast from Olympus to the island of Sicily, raised under Adamantia. Ares was always overshadowed by Athena, treated as a half-baked god of war and armies.
Of course, Zeus loved Hera. Even now, she could reclaim her youthful allure at any moment, and with it alone, she could rob Zeus of his senses. He'd forget the mortal world, Ares, Hephaestus—all of it—and stay bound in her bedchamber, that golden-haired thunder god chuckling as he nestled in her skirts.
Zeus's love for Hera was genuine, incomparable. But as king, he guarded his throne jealously, wary of any of his children's growth.
"Even with Heracles, I didn't expect that."
From what Hera had observed in the mortal world, Heracles marrying Adamantia was now a done deal. He had "captured" Echidna (?) and was heading to Sicily aboard Helios's golden ship. The serpent goddess Echidna, the island goddess Adamantia of Mount Etna, and now Adamantia was preparing to bind even the earth mother Gaia—their husband—to her family.
Yet Zeus, more delighted than anyone by this marriage and the impending victory in the Gigantomachia, planned to end it by granting Heracles merely the seat of a mid-tier god.
It had been so long since a minister married; she couldn't let it end so meagerly.
"Lady Hera, did you summon me?"
"Ah, come in, Aphrodite. I called you regarding the upcoming wedding. Marriage is my domain, but 'love and fertility' are yours."
"Oh, I'm delighted you remembered, Lady Hera."
The goddess Hera had summoned to her chamber was Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, with her flowing black hair and voluptuous figure.
The vows of marriage fell under Hera's purview, but love and beauty were Aphrodite's. To achieve what Hera had in mind, no one's cooperation was more essential than Aphrodite's.
"The reason I called you today, Aphrodite, concerns Heracles's impending marriage. It's only a matter of time now."
"Oh, for that? I've already sent Eros with a golden arrow, so it should be fine. Why summon me?"
"Watching the mortal world, it seems Adamantia intends to accept not just the serpent goddess Echidna as Heracles's mate, but Gaia as family too."
"...Classic Adamantia. No one else could pull that off."
"Exactly."
It was true. Even if Uranus had been castrated, he was a heavenly Protogenoi. Proposing someone inferior to him as Gaia's new husband required someone like the equally primordial Adamantia. No one without confidence in defeating the sky gods would dare.
But Adamantia was the foremost among Achaea's orea (mountains) and neoi (islands). She had every qualification.
Hera intended to exploit that to the fullest.
"So, Aphrodite, how about we play a fun game?"
"A game?"
"Yes. Send Eros to the island of Sicily one more time."
"Oh? And then?"
Aphrodite's dark eyes sparkled at the word "game." Hera smiled, drawing a graceful arc with her clear eyes matching Aphrodite's, and revealed her plan.
Let's make the goddess Gaia truly fall for Heracles.
"...Is that really okay? Goddess Gaia might get angry."
"Oh, Aphrodite. Don't you want to see it? The mother of all earth bowing before the great power of love and the vows of marriage."
"Well, I am annoyed that mortals are treating love so lightly these days. There should be some moderation."
The goddesses of "marriage and family" and "love and lust" weren't usually close, but they shared a commiseration. As marriage and family grew trivial and women's lives miserable, love and lust became base and pathetic too. Chastity in marriage and free eros were linked; without the former, the latter lost value.
The two goddesses needed to board the same ship to defend their irreplaceable line.
"Then, Aphrodite, I'll assume you're in. That's fine, right?"
"Of course, Lady Hera. Eros will love it too."
"Good. It's not exactly a bribe, but could I borrow your girdle of charm too? Zeus might interfere."
"Oh, how thorough. Sure, I'll lend it. For giving me a spot in such fun, it's the least I can do."
"Thank you, Aphrodite."
Hera resolved to eliminate even the possibility of Zeus's interference. If Gaia were struck by a golden arrow for Heracles, Zeus couldn't touch it. And her foster son, nursed at her breast—"Hera's adopted child"—would become a full minister.
With war imminent and Zeus needing Heracles's fate, he wouldn't intervene anyway.
"Son of Cronus, don't underestimate me. I too am a daughter of Cronus."
Hera's terrifying scheme had only just begun.