The shadowy blanket of the lunar mist coursed over Mount Olympus turning the luxurious light of day to shade. Our own Sun, Kleo, now lay, hidden behind the Moon, in a time of rest. Branwen, the Goddess of the Lunar Dark, and our very own souls as well, peered over the bleak darkness of the Earth below her. Branwen could not remember a time of more pleasure that wasn't in the gloom of the night. She hated when she had to sleep. The brightness of the Sun sickened her even thinking of it. Kleo and she have had this dispute before; not one or the other could simply just stay in the sky all the time. Each of them had their duties to the Earth, according to Kleo. But, to Branwen, she imagined it being wastes of time having the Sun appear everyday to take up the Moon's splendor. But it was the night now; all she could do now was bask in the glory that she could see the cosmos above, and dread the time when the morning dew appeared on the lush, silken grass.

Branwen lay in a cloud gazing at the ground. An ominous figure was in the nearby pasture, and Branwen instantly knew that it was none other than Seismus, the God of the Earth. She now had no fear of the Sun reappearing now. Branwen knew him well and couldn't help herself from briskly floating down to Earth and greeting him as the frill and feathers of her elaborate nightgown danced in the moonlight. In one swift movement, Seismus churned his head to face his visitor, only for Branwen to find that he had waterfalls of tears cascading down his cheeks. Branwen knew he wasn't himself, for he was always proud and standing tall with his solid gold chest plate and body armor making him stand out from all the other Gods. He appeared frail and broken, which meant that Branwen had done her work. Branwen gracefully walked to him and sat in the grass beside him, as Seismus angrily stood up, and started to head off in the other direction. Branwen simply smiled.

"Lovely evening, Seismus," she started nonchalantly in her irresistible, melodic voice as she petted the grass beside her leg, "You sure have done a fine job keeping this Earth beautiful and pristine." She surveyed the fields as they went on for miles and saw no flora, weeds, or harvest in sight. The only plant life was the grass, and the Holy Cyprus tree in the center of the pasture, which Branwen despised. Even worse was the fact that she could not destroy it with the power that she had. It stood there, full and almighty as if it were Zeus himself. She winced for a moment and dismissed the thought. She then innocently plucked a few blades of grass with her sharp, perfect fingernails, and began once again. "You know very well what has happened here, Seismus," her attitude growing colder by the minute, "and you know what I desire".

"We have gone down this road many a time, Branwen," Seismus sighed in his deep, disappointed voice, "and this time, I have to admit, you have outdone yourself." Branwen shrugged triumphantly.

"You're a good sport, Seismus," she spoke in a sarcastic tone. "I'm sure your precious flowery kin will forgive you for letting me do them harm." Seismus became infuriated and positioned himself ready for the attack.

"You killed what was precious to me most," he sobbed, "my plants, the very things that kept Olympus at the picture of beauty and life! Your powers may allow you to destroy anything you want, that isn't a God, but that doesn't mean you can befell of everything you despise." He paused and slightly grinned at the fact that he had outsmarted her. She couldn't destroy the Cyprus tree either; it was made from the purest of pure elements of the universe, and was considered Holy among the Gods. "Even though you have disposed of my greatest creations," he stuttered, "that doesn't mean I'm going to get rid of what keeps my creations at the peak of health. Kleo is one of my best friends, Branwen. I create the seeds and make them grow full and green, and Kleo does her part to keep them alive. No matter what you do, I will not get rid of the Sun! The Holy Cyprus tree shall stand forever, and it needs the Sun's warmth."

Seismus was the only God, besides ones of the Underworld, that had to power to dispose of another God. Branwen smirked, even though her amazing plan of angering Seismus, getting rid of all of his amazing plant life and trying to get him to kill Kleo with his uncontrollable fury, failed miserably. Seismus had never used his unspeakable power however; he was on the verge of giving it a test run.

"Your soul is the color of the blood of a mortal," Branwen began, "Furious, shaking, afraid, thoughts of revenge, and the thirst to kill…" As she went on, she only made Seismus that much more tense. "I have a proposition for you," she said out of the blue. Seismus then calmed, for the moment, and listened intently on what the Goddess of his own soul had to say. "We shall battle," she stated confidently, "but not in a battle of brawn; a battle of wit. Tactic. Who ever wins this so called challenge must grant the other's wishes. You could only imagine what I could do to your soul if you said no. Tear it, shred it, incinerate it until it is nothing but mere ashes…"

Seismus had a few requests and wishes of his own to Branwen, and he had not choice. "I accept, Branwen. The Gods have chosen both of our fates, and time cannot be stopped to change it. We shall fight." Branwen smiled as if she had this planned from the start.

"Very well then," she cackled, "Let us commence!" She lifted her arm carefully until it was vertically in front of her, and then gave a flick of the wrist. The sky started lightning and thundering, as Branwen was spell casting and making elaborate gestures with her arms. There were gusts of wind violently blowing as the ground below their feet turned to a giant checkerboard made of glass. Then, spirits of horses mounted by knights, soldiers, kings, and queens were conjured out of thin air, and they placed themselves in their correct spots on the game board. And with a final blow, everything was set, and they were ready. "Whoever traps the other opponents King wins, simple as that. You may have the first move; this won't take but a minute for me to rid of you." Seismus nodded in agreement, and he tried to contain himself with all of the sensations flooding his mind. What had he been thinking? Apart from very few of the Gods and Goddesses in Olympus, Branwen was one of the most tactful and tricky. He was about to lose.

Seismus guided his first soldier to another spot on the board. As he marched, the ground shook wrathfully, as he nearly fell over. Branwen laughed as he attempted to stand still. She then ordered one of her knights over to the helpless soldier and he fell fast. Seismus collapsed as the knight galloped across the landscape of the board; Branwen simply floated above the ground. Seismus had to think of a different strategy. If he continued in this fashion, he was sure to fail faster than Branwen made it seem. Then suddenly, a stroke of genius hit Seismus. This game was about gameplay, tactics, and strategy if he wasn't mistaken. And Branwen mentioned only the rule of trapping the other opponent's King to be victorious. As the shaking of the Earth came to a gentle rumble, Seismus stood back up valiantly and made his next move.

"My army of knights, soldiers, queens, and my king," he bellowed for all to hear, "My next order is for you all to attack and render our enemies helpless, and defeat their king!" Branwen stood there gaping at what he just said. In Branwen's complete and utter shock, Seismus's side stampeded wrathfully toward Branwen and her army. The ground shook vehemently and began to crack apart, forming crevices and fissures. Branwen, too, fell to the ground, unable to stand.

"This is traitorous, Seismus!" she shrieked from across the board, "This was a game of mind power, not brawn!"

"This was a game of brain, Branwen; I just used mine more resourcefully than you ever could have! I have won this battle, and my wishes are for you to no longer have a desire for eternal night! You must also help the Sun whenever it needs help, and aid me in returning all of my plants back, even the weeds! You can also not fight back, you are powerless."

Branwen was now defeated. The stampede continued on as it demolished everything in their path since Branwen's army was already killed. She then chortled maniacally. "You are dim, Seismus! Dimmer than the darkest depths of the Underworld! Your little army will not stop! I now do not have the power to cease their rage. And you have forced me to live the rest of my days as a helper and a peasant. You have only created more chaos, and it's all your fault!"

Seismus could not argue. It was rash of him to be so sudden with his demands. He hung his helmeted head. "You are right for once," he said sorrowfully, "It will now be my eternal destiny to stop that herd! For now, I shall have you remain as the Goddess of the Lunar Dark. Stay in the skies, Branwen, and let the Moon fulfill its duties. The only choice I have is to have my brother, Demeter, keep an eye on the harvest and plant life." Branwen had nothing left to do but nod.

"Have safe travels, Seismus. May your endeavors be achieved," Branwen said breathlessly. Seismus waved as he summoned for his stallion and rode into the rising sun.

Branwen disappeared, and had her first peaceful sleep as Kleo came out to guard Seismus on his travels with the power of the warming Sun. It is said that when the earth quakes, Seismus is out battling to end what he had started that one dreadful night.