Titanomachy VIII

," ... " There was a sudden stillness in the air, with all parties having stepped back and having a tense stare down. Kronos was reluctant to strike first, since his time travelling attacks were only advantageous in defensive and predictive combat. Zeus however, knew that he was way in over his head right now and just wanted a good hit in.

The Hydra was already preparing something, and they were waiting for a window. And, as the Mad King swept his eyes over to his 'traitorous kin', they struck! They each split into five bodies, one new serpentine body for each head. Like the famed Jormungandr, except there were five of them this time.

" RRAHH! " As expected, as the new colossal serpents charged within striking distance, they were beheaded by a quick and unseen swing. Unluckily though, the Hydra had already seen this coming, and prepared a little surprise for him.

" BOOOOMM! " The bodies all exploded into giant clouds of Chaos-infested poisonous mist, all with the exception of one that looked on coldly from a distance. See, there was a big advantage when you were obscured from certain fate, it's that you can make anything unpredictable. Kronos' towering frame was wobbling from the giant storms of deadly energy.

And just as quickly as the first, the now currently regenerating head had already crossed over to the Titan, and bit down as fiercely as possible.

" Boom! Boom! " As more and more newly reformed heads grew, more jaws assaulted Kronos, each snap of the beast's mighty jaws breaking the sound barrier.

Zeus, who saw the tyrant's compromised position instantly called out while channeling his divinity.

" Make time for me! " He yelled into the vast battlefield as golden sparks encircled his being and the Master Bolt in his grasp.

Kronos wrestled and struggled in the jaws of the furious monster. And he was about to escape too, if not for a well-timed strike!

" AHHH! " The King yelled, feeling a searing pain across his back. It was an ugly puncture wound, two of them to be exact.

" YOU! I REMEMBER YOU! " Kronos yelled at his assailant as he held back the beast from biting his head off, while also freezing the poison seeping abundantly into his system. It was Hades, he had just finished binding the fallen General, Atlas, when he heard his brother's call.

" I would hope so, you ate me after all. " Hades retorted dully.

" RAHHH!! I SMITE THEE! MAD KING!! " Zeus had finally gathered enough energy, and hurled the colossal mass of lightning towards his hated enemy. The bolt was huge! It rivalled the size of the Titans themselves, and brought storms that struck thunder violently.

It hurled at the speed of light, and was just about to impale Kronos when he suddenly released a familiar divinity. Just in the nick of time, the world had frozen once more, and judging the energy he had expelled for it, for quite a lengthy while.

This was against the natural laws of reality, messing with time like this. But who was to punish the King of the Cosmos anyway? And so, with a pulse of aura, he blasted the wretched beast flying, temporarily granting it time so they would get pushed back.

Rising from his fallen position, he looked toward the suspended bolt and his son, and ignored him. He looked toward the beast with fire in his eyes! That wretched thing would pay!

Arriving at the Hydra's new location, courtesy of the King of Time, Kronos looked down at the beast, reared his fist and obliterated the center-head!

" That would teach you... " Kronos looked down at the suspended waterfalls of purple blood ready to gush out at a moment's notice. Taking a deep breath, he brought his foot up, and stomped, again and again and again. Taking out all of his rage on the frozen beast.

He punched, mauled, sliced and diced and overall just desecrated the motionless monster with his scythe and fists until the creature only had one remaining head suspended in the air. Suddenly, as he was scattering the body before him, he saw movement.

" !.. what- " This shouldn't be possible! Time was frozen for Chaos' sake! Looking up slowly, he stared in horror at the remaining head... that was. staring. right. at. him.

" ...no... " Kronos denied with panicked needlepoint eyes. Until, the space around him warped and cracked. Space bent and and ripped throughout as Kronos stared in anxiousness around him. And suddenly, like glass, everything shattered. Kronos was thrown back, as if expelled by an external force outside his timeless dimension.

" AH! " the world revealed itself once more, and time returned to it's previous place. Kronos was thrown back, grasping at his face and eyes in pain. He saw, as the glass shattered, a terrifying facet of reality. It was overwhelming and nearly destroyed his divine senses, it was essentially a void filled with nothing... and everything at the same time.

It looked like if nothing was something... which it wasn't! A completely paradoxical state of existence and non-existence... and he had a pretty good guess what it was. Looking toward the Hydra in fear he muttered-

" Chaos... born... " A primordial... he realized. But that wasn't possible!? How could he not have sensed!? The beast in front of him had always felt like a normal beast! With a strong energy signature of poison and nature!... Kronos widened his eyes in realization once more.

"... nature... " He whispered out loud. It was her all along! He should have known! That day when his most trusted General returned with defeat. He should have remembered! That-

Suddenly, a particularly impaling reminder hit him once again. The mad tyrant looked down at his chest, and saw a gaping hole on it. Quickly freezing the bleeding, he looked behind him. Right behind him, just a couple hundred meters away, Zeus stared in triumph.

The bolt he had forgotten in his rage! How foolish he was! No, more importantly, how dare he!! Kronos seethed as he continuously expended energy on the wound.

Looking at the triumphant Zeus and the reforming beast, he made one final decision. One final gamble.

" Oh Eternal Time! Run your course! Accompany my enemies to their inevitable end! And through death, give value to their traitorous lives!!! " The King of Titans, Kronos declared loudly. A large projection of an ethereal clock rang in the horizon, eclipsing the sun. On one side of the construct, stood Zeus. On another, lay the five-headed Hydra. And in the middle, the King himself.

As the hands ticked and ticked, the distant tolling of bells rang and rang endlessly, echoing throughout the world. Kronos raised his scythe, and released his aura to its highest potential. This was the King of Titans, Monarch of one of the most vital pillars of reality, Time.

--- To Be Continued ---

( So, the arc is finally nearing it's end. Also if you want, you can recommend a name for our Hydra, since he will finally enter the main stage. I know this is really late, but I couldn't really find a time or reason to give the MC a name. And if you do suggest a name, please make it make sense. That's all bye! Remember to support the novel if you like it. Power stones, comments, reviews, anything is appreciated! That's all bye! )