Zeus

Above all else, Zeus has to be the leader.

Everything he says, everything he does, has to be with purpose. He can’t fumble his words and he can’t be seen making mistakes. He has to be perfect because if he isn’t, then who would be? It’s maddening; most days, all he wants is to settle down with a pretty mortal dragon and live out the rest of his life in peace.

Maybe his need to be perfect came from paranoia. When his son Apollo had blessed the Oracle of Delphi, the first prophecy it had spat was one concerning Zeus. He doesn’t remember the details now, too caught up in the war to really pay attention when it was spoken to him, but he remembers the most important detail. He was destined to die alone, far from the gods’ lands, and his family filled with rage.

And despite knowing this, Zeus still does what he can to make them mad.

With every beautiful mortal he sees, he cheats on his wife Hera. At every moment he can, he berates his children. He does so to protect himself, for he knows when his destiny comes, he will not be able to handle it. He thinks that distancing himself now will help when ties are severed later.

The one thing he does not know, however, is the prophecy. The Lord Dragon is not wrong; the prophecy does talk about how Zeus will die alone in unexplored lands, and his family will be angered beyond return. Beyond just that, it tells of his greatness as the leader, and how he is avenged tenfold. The biggest thing he doesn’t know, unfortunately, is the more he distances himself, the bigger he screws over the great prophecy. And that meant one thing:

Above all else, Zeus has failed at being the leader.