Heshiena's Point of View

An hour have been passed since the start of our new lesson for today. I got to know how the universe created. On how Chaos was able to produce an entity on her own. Hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala kung gaano ka-intense ang simula ng conflict against Ouranos.

Kronos even castrate his father and all the blood that spilled the earth and ocean, naipanganak naman ang mga gigantes, ash tree nymphs, at Erinyes. Hindi ko alam kung ano o sino ang Erinyes. Maging si Aphrodite ay naipanganak sa pamamagitan ng sea foam noong bumagsak ang genital ni Ouranos sa dagat.

Mind-blowing.

I concluded that the deities had the power to reproduce in their own way. I guess, some of them? Hindi ko alam. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Miss Meriam flash a smile while her eyes were locked on me.

"Erinyes, also known as Furies, are the spirits of vengeance who serve the god Hades." They are working for the King of the Underworld, I see. "They are his torturers in the Underworld and punish the crimes of the wicked." Tumatango-tango ako habang nagle-lesson si Miss Meriam tungkol sa kanila.

"Each Fury was sometimes represented as avenging a certain type of crime, such as crime, grudges, or murder." Inilagay ko ang aking baba sa aking palad, habang nakasuporta ang aking siko. "Furies consists of three spirits. Sila ay sina Alecto, ang galit, Megaera, ang sama ng loob, at si Tisiphone, ang tagapaghiganti."

Miss Meriam clasped her hands. Dahilan para makuha niya ang aming buong atensyon.

Si Ace naman na inaantok ay nagsilakihan ang mga mata dahil sa gulat. Tinawanan naman siya nina Dash, Fuego, at Zuki. Habang si Blaze naman ay pailing-iling sa ulo, pero nakangiti.

"Moving on." Nagpakawala si Miss Meriam ng malalim na buntonghininga bago nagpatuloy. Biglang sumeryoso ang mukha niya. "Kronos became the next ruler. Naging titan king siya ng Mount Othrys, home of the titans. Gaya ng kaniyang ipinangako, ipinagkalooban niya ang mga kapatid na tumulong sa kaniya na kontrolin ang apat na sulok ng mundo. And released his Elder Cyclopes and Hekatonkheires brothers from Tartarus."

"In return, they built a magnificent black marble palace for him on the top of Mount Othrys, and a massive obsidian throne encrusted with gold and diamonds. Believing everything was fine now, their mother decided to rest for many thousands of years."

Believing everything was fine? Kumunot ang noo ko dahil diyan. I silently scoff when I realized the Olympians wasn't born at this time. Perhaps, that's what it meant.

"However, the Golden Age was mere propaganda and mortals were only seen as fast food or cheap entertainment of the Titans." I could somehow trace Miss Meriam's disgusted tone on her voice.

Ipinikit niya ang kaniyang mata upang pakalmahin ang sarili. "As the titan of time, Kronos particularly relished time's destructive properties, being immortal himself. He would often travel the world and speed up the lives of random plants, animals and humans, sadistically watch them wither up and die," she continued.

My eyes went closed for a couple of seconds after I heard what Miss Meriam said. Wow, I am speechless. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang dapat kong i-react kay Kronos.

"Sa oras na ito, madalas na nilapitan ni Kronos ang kaniyang clairvoyant na kapatid na si Koios na may tanong tungkol sa hinaharap. Ang kaniyang pamangkin na si Atlas ay malapit nang lumaki upang maging kaniyang pinakamakapangyarihan at tapat na tagasunod, heneral ng kaniyang pwersa," she paused. "Lalong naiinis si Kronos sa lahat ng hindi matiis na ingay na patuloy na ginagawa ng kaniyang mga kapatid na Hekatonkheires at elder cyclopes. At ang kanilang nakasusuklam na baho. Kaya naman, ikinulong niya ang mga ito sa Tartarus. Sa pagkakataong ito, binabantayan sila ni Kampê, ang pinakamabangis at nakakatakot na halimaw sa buong Tartarus."

We heard Miss Meriam's defeated sigh.

"Kronos married his sister, the Titaness Rhea, who bore him five children. At first, Kronos seemed willing to be a good father and not to resemble his own father. However, he suddenly realized that Hestia wasn't a titaness, but rather, a more powerful and beautiful immortal, a goddess."

Mata at tenga ko ay nakapokus lamang kay Miss Meriam.

"Sa takot na baka isang araw ay madaig siya ni Hestia, to Rhea's horror, Kronos quickly swallowed her whole. Trying to calm down his beloved wife, Kronos would give her many gifts and invite her to multiple magnificent dinners." Napailing ako dahil dito.

Ito 'yong nabasa ko sa libro noong naghanap ako ng impormasyon tungkol kay Poseidon. The day I read about him and Medusa.

"So much like his father, Kronos maltreated his children, devouring each of them at the time of birth. Rhea was distressed by her husband's treatment of her children and, just like Gaea before her, plotted against Kronos."

The history repeats itself. Got it.

"On the advice of her mother, when it was time to give birth to her sixth child, Rhea hid herself on Crete, leaving the new-born child to be raised by the nymphs of the island. To conceal her act, she wrapped a stone in swaddling clothes and passed it off as the supposed baby to Kronos, who, unaware of her intentions, swallowed it yet again."

May nabasa pa nga ako sa libro na dahil dito ay tinagurian si Kronos bilang The King of Cannibal. Ace's eyes grew wider when Miss Meriam pointed her index finger at him. I saw him gulped twice before standing up from sitting.

"Sino ang batang itinago ni Rhea?" she asked him.

Ace's fear plastered upon his face. "I think it's Zeus," his answer sounds unsure.

I saw Miss Meriam nodded. "Despite that you are unsure of your answer, it's correct." Ace flashed a smile after hearing what our teacher said.

Sinenyasan naman siya ni Miss Meriam na bumalik sa pagkakaupo.

"Zeus was raised by the nymphs Adrasteia and Ida, and the she-goat Amalthea, he quickly grew into a handsome youth in a cave of the Cretan Mount Ida. When the time came, he left Crete to ask his future wife, the titaness Metis, for an advice on how to defeat Kronos," she paused before proceeding.

Miss Meriam slightly lean her back to the table. "She answered by preparing a drink indistinguishable from Kronos' favorite wine but designed to make him vomit for ages. Nagpanggap si Zeus bilang cupbearer ng mga diyos at, pagkaraan ng ilang sandali, matagumpay na nailagay niya ang ibinigay sa kaniya ni Metis."

Tinignan niya kami sa mata. Pero tinablan kaagad ako ng kaba nang magtama ang aming mata. She then flashed a challenging smile upon her lips.

"Heshiena," she called me by my name. Everyone looked at me. "Ano'ng sa tingin mo ang sumunod na nangyari?" she asked.

Tumayo ako sa pagkakaupo nang may kumpiyansa sa sarili. Naalala ko kasi 'yong nabasa ko tungkol dito pagkatapos magtagumpay sa plano si Zeus.

I sigh in confidence before answering Miss Meriam's question. "Kronos was forced to instantly disgorge all of the contents of his stomach, in reverse order of swallowing: first boulder, then Poseidon, followed by Hades, Hera, Demeter, and Hestia. The Olympians were spilled out in full armor. After that, they escaped before their titan relatives could recover properly," sagot ko.

Ngumiti sa akin si Miss Meriam dahilan para nahihiya akong umupo pabalik sa aking upuan.

"That is correct," she said. "Zeus' siblings was overwhelmed with gratitude, he was recognized as their leader," dugtong niya sa sagot ko.

She crossed her arms across her chest and started to walk around the room.

"All six of Kronos' divine children quickly declared war against their father and other titans, which resulted in the terrifying eleven-year-long Titanomachy," Miss Meriam continued. "But Rhea was able to convince all the female Titans and Oceanus to remain neutral all side with her children."

Huminto sa paglalakad si Miss Meriam sa upuan ni Blei. Dahilan para mapaangat ito ng tingin sa kaniya. She flashed a smile, but Blei was also quick to respond.

"Can you tell us what happened, Miss Blei?" puno ng pagrespeto niyang tanong.

Blei nodded. "Kronos enlisted the help of the faithful titans, who also feared the generation of gods. Atlas became the titan's leader and led his armies to many victories. At one point, it even seemed that Zeus would be defeated."

Huminto muna si Blei sa pagsasalita bago naisipang magpatuloy.

"Gayunpaman, sa payo ni Gaea, pumunta si Zeus sa Tartarus at pinakawalan ang Cyclopes at ang Hekatonkheires. Bilang pasasalamat, binigyan ng Cyclopes si Zeus ng kaniyang signature thunderbolt; gumawa din sila ng trident para kay Poseidon at helmet of invisibility para kay Hades," she paused once again.

She then let her eyes roam around the room.

"The tables had turned."

Chills race down my spine after Blei said the last sentence before she decided to seat back down. Miss Meriam nodded twice her head in proud. Kanina pa hindi nawawala ang matamis niyang ngiti sa labi.

"With the help of the big three's new extremely powerful weapons, and the aid of the elder cyclopes and hekatonkheires, the gods finally prevailed," her voice sounds like a conclusion. "During the final battle, Zeus and his siblings ascended to Mount Olympus, the tallest mountain in Greece after Mount Othrys, used his master bolt to shear off the top of the titans home, and hurled Kronos from his black throne, defeating the titan king," she continued.

"Shortly after, the gods invaded the ruins of Mount Othrys, and finally overwhelmed the remaining titans." Huminto siya sa paglalakad sa upuan ni Zuki. Napatingin din si Zuki nang maramdaman nito ang presensya niya. "Ano ang natanggap na parusa ng mga titans, Mr. Zuki?" she asked.

Tumayo si Zuki sa pagkakaupo habang nakapamulsa ang dalawang kamay niya.

"Zeus exiled the titans who had fought against him into Tartarus, the deepest region of underworld that is used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked. Only Kronos' mighty former second-in-command, Atlas, received a different punishment, as he was forced to hold up the sky on his shoulders while being chained to the ruins of Mount Othrys," kalmadong sagot niya.

Tinanguhan ni Zuki si Miss Meriam pagkatapos. Miss Meriam nodded as well as a response. Nang makita ni Zuki ang tugon ng guro ay umupo siya pabalik sa upuan niya.

"But," Miss Meriam's voice became serious. "It is said that from time to time, over the eons, Kronos has stirred, entered everyone's nightmares, and breathed evil thoughts. This implies that he had repeatedly tried to manipulate others in order to escape from Tartarus, but was ultimately unsuccessful," dugtong niya.

That made me caught off guard. My heart skipped a beat. Napalunok din ako ng laway sa posibilidad na baka makatakas ang titan king. I couldn't picture that out in my mind what would be the outcome.

Naglakad si Miss Meriam pabalik sa front table. Pagkatapos ay humarap sa amin at binigyan kami ng nanghahamong ngiti sa labi.

"Ready yourself, magkakaroon tayo ng quiz."