Without a word being spoken, Russell could tell what Zeus was thinking just by looking at his face. He had seen that expression far too many times.
If it had been anyone else, Russell might have let it slide. But what right did Zeus have to look down on him? He immediately snorted. "The King of Gods works day and night. You must be rushing off to your next appointment, so I won't waste your time."
"Hold on!"
Zeus grabbed Russell, who was disguised as Poseidon, and said solemnly, "Tell me the truth. Why are you showering Artemis with such attention? This concerns the struggle for power between the old and new generations of gods. If you don't explain yourself, I won't let you act recklessly."
"Aren't you the one acting recklessly?"
Russell scoffed. Zeus appeared to support neither side, but he was actually backing Artemis's bid for power while secretly sleeping with Selene. Russell had never seen anyone so shameless.
"What do you know? I've ruled Mount Olympus with this method for years, and nothing has ever gone wrong."
"You rule by sleeping with women?"
Russell mocked, "No wonder Hades and Poseidon refuse to accept you. It turns out you never slept with them."
"Stop changing the subject and answer my question."
Zeus was growing angry from embarrassment as Russell kept harping on that little bit of flesh.
"Fine. Do you want the truth or a lie?"
"The truth, obviously."
"I took Helios's Divine Authority before. The old gods don't like the sight of me, and there's no possibility of reconciliation between us."
Russell laid out his reasoning. "If Artemis successfully takes the Moon Goddess's Divine Authority, it will weaken the old gods' influence on one hand, and on the other, she can share some of my pressure by