Looking at his current status, Cul couldn't help but be surprised he gained a new divinity and even became the new ruler of the underworld, with this new power and realm, Cul's mind worked overtime thinking of the best course of action to take.
Eventually, he smiled"It seems I could gain some powerful followers soon, but their loyalty would be questionable at best, I could always use some magic to mess with their minds not much just to add a loyalty factor, after all using the prisoners from Tartarus as my followers without a back-up plan would be foolish." mumbles Cul
"I can always think about this later right now I need to seal off the underworld from the outside world," says Cul as he closes his eyes and uses his connection to the underworld to find all the entrances, after getting back the information, Cul finds out there are only two entrances to the underworld, the one he used and one in Olympus, and he also senses Gaea present.
"Mhm, she looks worried I better bring her here before I seal the place off," says Cul as with a swing of his hand a portal opens in front of him, and on the other side, Gaea could be seen.
(Gaea Pov)
Not long after Gaea projected the barrier to stop Cul's aura from reaching away from the cave, she was now retracting the barrier as the aura had receded, but this only caused her to worry even more, just as the green barrier completely disappeared, she sensed the space in front of her opening and connecting to somewhere else forming a portal.
Gaea could feel the person doing this was the same one who released the aura she just stopped, and even now it felt like Cul but not at the same time, it confused her, but as the portal completely formed on the other side she could see Cul standing there looking right at her.
"You just going to stand there? get in," said Cul
Gaea was shocked when she laid eyes on Cul, through the portal she could feel there was something different about him, she entered the portal and arrived in the underworld in front of cul with the portal closing behind her.
"Cul what happened here?" asks Gaea as she studies the destroyed area around her
"I just had a run-in with Hades, he's not a problem anymore." Cul answers
"What! you killed him?"
"Yeah."
"..."
(Gaea POV ends)
Seeing Gaea stop asking questions, Cul got back to what he was going to do, as he focuses back on his connection to the underworld he first closes the entrance he used to enter the underworld before sealing it off, then he turns to the other connected to mount Olympus, and closing will alert the other Olympians but to cul this matters not as they won't be able to enter after he seals it, and that exactly what he did, now with the two entrances closed.
Cul turns his attention back to Gaea seeing her still standing there looking at him he, transports the two of them to the cyclopes who are still unconscious from the release of his aura earlier.
With a wave of his hand in their direction, after a couple of minutes, the bodies of the cyclopes started moving until they were all standing looking at both Gaea and Cul.
"We greet the mother."
Gaea looked at the children she had failed, as they came about their own father banished them to Tartarus, and even after Cronus defeated their father their brother left them here, and they even helped Zeus and his siblings just to left here still, they have lived there whole life in Tartarus, and she couldn't help but feel sad and responsible for it, as she went deeper into these feeling, she suddenly felt a hand holding her snapping her out of her thoughts.
She turns and with no surprise, it Cul holding her hand snapping her out of her thoughts.
"It's not your fault, you tried many times to help them while maintaining your part of not interfering too much, you did the best you could," said Cul
To say Gaea was surprised, would be an understatement she knew Cul cared about her but for him to take the lead in being intimate in any way or comforting her was still a bit far off at least that's how it was when he left for the underworld, it seems something has changed, it made her wonder if this was the same Cul.
As Gaea looked at Cul and really observed she noticed even though he looked the same on the outside, the feeling he gave off before and the one he was currently giving off was different.
Before he was completely cold and indifferent to everything and almost everyone, like what was happening around him had no effect on him and he was completely separate from it, but now she wouldn't call him warm but he was different, though the coldest was now even colder and the indifference gave you the feeling he was above everything, she could see this wasn't for her and when he looked at her earlier even though there wasn't love in his eyes, there wasn't the usual coldness, there was tenderness?
"You seem confused, I guess it's because of my change, go ahead ask your questions," says Cul to Gaea
"What happened to Hades?"
"Simply answer I ate him, the more complicated explanation would be I absorbed him taking all he had and was."
"Is that what caused your change?"
"You could say that by absorbing Hades I got his memories, and going through it the past couple of days I have learned a lot, I need to change the way I am going to deal with the people I intend to have following me, If I continue how I was going I would end up as a tyrant all alone with a sea of enemies ready to work together to get ridden of me, this, of course, doesn't mean I will completely change who I am I will only hold back a bit, otherwise I will end up like Ouranos, Cronus, and Zeus, being paranoid about betrayal will only lead me to make foolish decisions, I already have three people I know can trust and you happen to be one of them."
As Gaea heard this she was overcome with joy that Cul trusted her that she didn't hear what followed, or if she did she ignored thinking that it would never come to pass.
"I will trust you Gaea, but if you betray me I will kill you in the most painful way possible."