Sometimes, the greatest stories are the ones where we question everything we thought we knew.

The world of Olympus didn’t just happen overnight. It started with a simple question: Who is the hero, and who is the foe? In mythology, these roles are often laid out in black and white, but I wanted to shake things up and explore a new perspective. Naturally, Hades—often depicted as the villain—was the first to come to mind. And then the real question hit me: Why? Why is Hades so easy to dislike?

Hades is the eldest of the gods, and we often think of firstborns as natural-born leaders, those who shoulder responsibility and care for their younger siblings. So why has Hades been vilified for centuries? Shouldn’t he be respected for his position, wisdom, and leadership? These questions set the foundation for what became one of the most important aspects of my world-building process. If Hades was going to be the hero of The Cosmic World of Olympus, I needed to understand what went wrong in the traditional tales. What led to the disconnect between the eldest brother and the rest of Olympus?

A Hero in the Shadows: Reimagining Hades

When I first set out to write this story, I wanted to look at Hades through a different lens. I started by asking, “What if Hades was never meant to be the villain? What if he was the hero all along?” It was clear to me that there had to be a deeper reason for the tensions between him and the other gods, especially his younger brother, Zeus. To answer these questions, I had to take a step back. I had to go back to the beginning, back to a time when Hades and Zeus weren’t at odds. After all, they’re brothers, and brothers don’t start out as enemies—they love and protect each other.

But before I could explore the dynamics of these two brothers and their eventual conflict, I realized something essential: I needed to shed light on the world they inhabit. Olympus couldn’t just be another realm attached to Earth. It had to stand alone as its own place in the universe—rich in history, full of life, and brimming with its own distinct culture. And most importantly, I needed to understand who created it, and why.

The Creation of Olympus: Building a Unique World

To truly explore the relationship between these two brothers and the gods of The Cosmic World of Olympus, I had to start with the world itself. Olympus couldn’t be just another heavenly realm perched on a mountaintop; it had to be a living, breathing place that was essential to the universe. So I asked myself, “Why was Olympus created? Why were these gods needed in the first place?”

This was the starting point. I imagined a world that wasn’t just another realm on Earth but its own standalone planet in the cosmos. I envisioned a place of beauty and natural wonder, shaped by the creativity and love of Gaia and Phanes. They didn’t just create gods for the sake of power—they created them out of necessity, to protect the mortals and the world they cherished. The gods weren’t born to rule; they were born to protect. This is why they were needed, and this is where the story begins.

The creation of Olympus wasn’t a simple act of power; it was an act of love, of necessity. Gaia, in her infinite wisdom, saw the potential for life on this new world, but she also saw the dangers that lurked within it. That’s where the gods came in—to bring balance, order, and protection to a world teeming with life. But even in a perfect world, things don’t always go as planned. The relationship between Hades and Zeus, between all the gods, is shaped by these early moments of creation, by their purpose, and by the responsibilities they carry.

The Gods: Brothers Born to Protect

The gods of Olympus were created for one purpose—to protect. They were not born with crowns on their heads or thrones beneath them. They were brothers, bonded by their duty to the world. And at the beginning, they fought together, not against each other. I wanted to show that before there was division, there was unity. Hades and Zeus, like all siblings, began their journey as allies, not enemies. They were born to protect Olympus, its people, and each other.

But as we all know, power can corrupt. Responsibility can weigh heavy. And sometimes, the greatest battles are fought not with enemies, but with family. As I developed this world, I wanted to explore that dynamic—how do brothers who once fought to protect each other become foes? What went wrong along the way? And how does a god like Hades, who was born to lead, end up as the one standing in the shadows?

These were the questions that drove the creation of Olympus. It’s not just a world of gods and monsters—it’s a world where relationships, power, and duty intertwine in ways that challenge our understanding of heroism and villainy.

A World Rooted in Questions

In the end, the creation of Olympus wasn’t just about building a fantasy world—it was about questioning the stories we’ve always known. Why is Hades the villain when he was the firstborn, the natural leader? What events led to his fall from grace? And how do relationships between brothers, who once loved and protected each other, unravel into the conflicts we see today?

By reimagining Olympus and its gods, I set out to tell a different kind of story. One where the hero and the villain aren’t so easily defined, where the world itself plays a role in shaping the characters, and where the choices made by gods and mortals alike ripple across the cosmos.

The Cosmic World of Olympus was born from these questions, and as I continue to explore this universe, I hope readers will see that the line between hero and villain is not always so clear. Sometimes, the greatest stories are the ones where we question everything we thought we knew.