Crowned in the realm of death

With two orbs awakened, Minerals and Magic, I steadied myself once more. The rush of power, though exhilarating, had not shaken my focus. I knew I could not stop here. The divine spark within me burned brighter with each step forward.

I turned my attention inward again and focused on the third orb a grey sphere, dull on the surface but shifting subtly, like fog concealing something beneath. The moment I reached toward it, I felt something different. Not resistance… but silence.

A hollow quiet that beckoned, not loudly, but persistently.

I channelled my divine energy carefully, steadily, just like before. But this time, the sensation was… deeper. The grey orb accepted the energy not with warmth or resistance, but with a chilling stillness. And then, knowledge began to trickle into my mind not loud proclamations, but whispers.

Secrets.

This godhood wasn't just about knowing things it was about what was hidden.

Schemes.

Whispers behind closed doors.

Ancient, forbidden knowledge is buried in ruins or sealed away in forbidden texts. It was the power of concealment, of understanding the unknown and unknowable. I sensed abilities tied to political manipulation, lies that become truth, and even the terrifying stillness of invisibility, where even gods might not see you coming.

A strange smile touched my lips.

This power… isn't meant for the bold. It's meant for the patient. The observer. The strategist.

—

From nearby, Hestia watched with increasing fascination. Her expression grew thoughtful, almost guarded.

This time, Hades' aura didn't flare outward like a flame or sharpen like a blade. Instead, it folded inward, veiling itself in layers of shadow and complexity. His divine presence was now harder to read—like staring into a calm lake that hid monstrous depths.

His aura had become opaque.

"His aura…" she whispered, "is hiding itself."

She watched with awe and unease. "This domain... It's not just secrets. It's the keeper of what others fear to know. The shadows behind the throne. The whisper that topples kings."

The air around Hades shimmered faintly, a subtle distortion, as if the space itself bent away from prying eyes.

Hestia placed a hand over her heart. "He's not just awakening powers, he's forming the tools of a king. A king who won't always need to be seen… to rule."

And in that moment, as the grey orb fused into his soul, another piece of the future Lord of the Underworld quietly clicked into place.

Hades, the Keeper of Secrets, had awakened.

With three orbs awakened, my divine presence had already begun to take form a presence rooted in stone, shaped by magic, and cloaked in secrets. But I wasn't finished.

I turned inward once more, this time locking onto the fourth orb a deep crimson, glowing faintly like a burning coal in pitch black.

As I reached for it, I felt something primal stir within me.

The air around me seemed to grow heavier, colder. I could feel my heartbeat slow… and then quicken. A subtle pressure pressed against my chest—not pain, but dread. Instinct screamed at me to stop, to retreat.

But I didn't.

I pushed forward and began channelling my divine energy into the red orb.

Immediately, something changed not just inside me, but in the space around me.

—

Hestia, watching as always from across the cave, felt the shift instantly.

Her breath caught.

Her skin prickled.

And for the first time since she had met me her own brother, her heart began to race.

It wasn't exciting.

It was fear.

Her divine instincts, honed through centuries of existence, responded as though a predator had entered the space. Her body tensed, her flame flickered uncertainly, and the cave around us seemed to darken—not from shadow, but from something deeper.

The very concept of safety was being challenged.

Back in meditation, I felt the red orb pull something out of me not just power, but a mirror of my inner self. It wasn't about scaring others it was about understanding fear itself. This godhood was more than intimidation. It was the domain of:

Phobia, whose roots are in the soul

Terror, that paralyses armies

Awe, that silences kings

Madness, born from staring too long into the abyss

Authority, drawn not from love—but from dreaded respect

And more importantly… the ability to control, inflict, or even suppress fear within others, and within myself.

I felt it start to meld with me, the essence of dread fusing into my being not as a monster, but as a necessary force. One that holds order when hope fails.

Hestia stepped back, her lips slightly parted.

"This is… unlike the others," she whispered to herself, hands trembling. "This isn't just a godhood. It's a warning."

She watched the dark haze around me grow heavier, thicker yet controlled. Like a storm confined within a vessel.

And in that moment, a part of her saw not the child she had nurtured in the depths of Cronus but the future god whose very presence would cause mortals to kneel, and gods to pause.

Hades, God of Fear, had begun

to rise.

And the world would soon learn true rule does not begin with love… it begins with fear.