The Judge

For a moment, everyone was silent. They all knew this story. Then, in unison, all the heads turned toward the one with the highest status present.

Zeus felt a headache. The first thing that came to his mind was that this incident was Eris' revenge. But this cannot be. She should have perished by now...

He shook his head, trying to regain his senses. Everybody was waiting for his decision, so he needed to make one quickly.

"Ahem... There is a precedent for this case, so we will handle it according to tradition. First, who wants to claim this fruit for themselves?"

All females present felt an irresistible attraction for the apple, but they had enough reason left to not challenge the big shots. They knew the candidates could only be Olympians.

The female Olympians looked at each other, then Aphrodite stood up and said: "I'm the champion of the last competition, so I'll volunteer first."

She tried to be humble, but a smirk appeared on her face. Among her two old rivals, Athena was a virgin, while Hera didn't have any demigod children. It's a victory without a fight.

I can feel the ultimate power surging in the fruit. With it, I will become the mightiest goddess! May even more than Zeus...

Her daydream only lasted one second. Demeter stood up and said, "Fruitfulness is my domain. There's no way I let another goddess have this fruit."

Aphrodite felt a bit of discomfort, but her confidence didn't waver. Demeter cannot compare with me in this field. She had two daughters with Zeus and Poseidon, and both were the result of rape. She is inexperienced with men.

Her confidence took a great hit when another rival appeared.

Zeus stood up: "Mother, why are you here?"

Rhea raised her eyebrows: "I'm the Titaness of motherhood and fertility. Why shouldn't I be here? Especially when there is a contest of motherhood."

Zeus felt a bit uneasy about this, but he still announced: "Okay, we had three final contestants. As for the judge..."

Hera, who was sitting next to him, suddenly said: "Your Majesty, I think we should use a different method to pick an impartial judge. The last time, Paris was a man as handsome as a god himself, so he had the ability to judge who was fairest of them all. But men don't experience childbirth."

"Then we can have a pregnant woman act as the judge. I know one..." Zeus blurted out, but managed to stop before saying the name of his latest lover.

Hera didn't seem to notice. She continued as normal: "Any woman who is selected as the judge can simply claim the fruit for herself."

"Then what's your proposal?"

"We'll use the Law of Surprise. From this moment, the first man who passes through the gate of Camp Half-Blood will be the judge of this contest."

Everyone agreed with the idea. Then almost all the guests made their way to the gate.

They didn't have to wait for long. Several minutes later, a man appeared at the entrance.

"Hi, my name is John Doe. Coach Hedge brought me here. Where's my camp?"