Daughter of Medusa

by Jessica Cage

  “Great, I’ll go ahead.” Asa approached Tethys first, and lifted her hands to her ears. “This will provide cover for your ears so that you are not affected by my voice, but you’ll still be able to hear. Let's get this done as quickly as possible.” After providing the same magical ear plugs for the others, Asa stood up, dropped her veil to allow Calypso to appear and walked forward.

  "What was that?" Rhea gawked.

  "I suggest you prepare yourself, sister. My daughter is about to shine." Tethys said proudly.

  As Asa sauntered away from the group, her body moved with the sensual rhythm of the ocean. She swayed seductively as if standing atop a boat on the high seas, until she came into view of the Minotaurs. They spotted her and immediately growled, howled and were ready to charge. Until she opened her mouth. She sang a melody, a lullaby that calmed the mutated forms. They were beast yes, but they were also men. That human part of them bended to her will and was lulled into submission.

  "She is truly amazing," Rhea complimented Tethys on the daughter she had no hand in raising. Still her sister beamed with pride as they both stood to move into place. They're jobs were to provide cover for Iris and Delilah as well as back up for Asa should she lose her hold over the monsters who currently swooned from her voice.

  Tethys used a cloud from above, manipulating the moisture to bring it down to the surface of the earth and cover their movement. While she and her sister circled the monsters who were too drunk on the seductive audio to question the strange clouds, Iris and Delilah made their way to the cavern opening that only Iris could see.

  They're plan worked perfectly, until Iris and made it to the opening. They paused for a moment, Iris grabbing hold of Delilah's hand as tightly as she could. The connection gave her the shot of bravery she needed to lead the woman forward, but once her foot carried her across the threshold she found her hand empty. She looked back to see the confused expression of Delilah.

  "Come on!" She whispered frantically, but not only could Delilah not see her, she couldn't hear her either.

  When she tried to exit the cavern, to return to Delilah and figure out what the hell was going on, she couldn't. The barrier rippled with light when she tried to step through and pushed her backwards further into the cave. She fell against the wall of stone. When her head cleared she realized the pounding she heard was not coming from within her skull but was produced by the sound of Delilah's fists pounding against the invisible barrier. Her angered cries ricocheted around them and interrupted the trance that Asa had put the minotaurs under.

  Iris watched in horror as the beasts shook away the cloud from their heads, turned towards Delilah whose back was to them and charged. She wanted to warn her but when she made it to her feet, she had to duck for cover as two of the monsters came running to answer the battle cry of the ones outside. Luckily, Delilah had moved out of the way and avoided being rammed by the horns that were directed at her. Iris kept sight on the woman who fought bravely beside the titans and the sphinx. When she was confident that they would be okay, she turned her back on the scene and headed deeper into the cavern.

  Carefully she tiptoed through the cavern, ducking again quickly into hiding as three other monsters ran towards the exit to join the battle. With the additional support that ran outside, it left just one inside and it was lazily lounging against the wall. Its eyes drooped shut and she took that as her opening. She ran past him quickly and on light toes until she hit the center of the mountain where the pillar that held Phoebe stood. Unlike the rest of the place which was just your standard cave, hollowed out walls and dirt floors, the center was magnificent. Swirls of designs speckled with star dust covered the floor. The walls and ceilings were covered in enchanted carvings.

  When her feet touched down on the surface of the ornate floor, it lit up. The designs began to move, and the colors changed, mimicking the universe. The movement reached up along the walls and to the ceiling.

  She watched in awe, until the growl from behind her rang out, bouncing back off the walls inside the ornate cavern. The monster charged towards her and she ran further into the room stumbling as she did but keeping from falling to the floor. The light shot up from the floor surrounding her in a circle of dancing colors. The monster tried its best to get to her, tearing at the barrier but it could not.

  Not wanting to test the bounds of the light that kept him back, Iris dashed for the pillar. She had to figure out how to set Phoebe free. No stone was provided like with her sister and when she got there she realized why.

  The pillar was plain, unlike the room it sat in, it was a smooth surface, no designs or markings. She circled the thing and whimpered.

  "How the hell am I supposed to get you out?" She asked as the minotaur roared with growing anger.

  She flinched and touched the pillar and beneath her hand a script appeared. It was a single saying. “And her spirit possessed all the shades of the universe.”

  Beneath the script, appeared a handprint, one that matched the size of her own. Instinct told her to place her hand there and she did. The spot warmed beneath her hand as a rainbow of color spread across the surface of the stone that held the titan. The rainbow that decorated it danced for a vibrant moment before the pillar shattered beneath her touch.

  The moment the pillar broke, the barrier of light that held back the minotaur fell, and the angry beast burst forward. Iris fell back as she searched for a place to hide or a weapon to defend herself with, she had neither. Just as the thing made its final leap to reach her, a spear of blue light shot out from over her head, catching the thing midair. Its blood poured out on the floor beneath it and splattered onto Iris' face. She screamed as it was then tossed to the side and fell with a thud against the galaxy covered floor.

  “You’ve come to awaken me, why?” The voice was a mixture of melody and malice. Iris turned to see the woman, wild with the taste of freedom on her lips. Phoebe stood there; skin pale like the moonlight that shone from within her with stark white hair that fell to her waist. The strands moved like the tides of the sea.

  “Your sisters need your help.” Iris quickly responded, afraid that the spear of light would be turned on her.

  "Sisters? Which sisters?" Phoebe pondered as if the answer would determine the frightened girl's fate.

  "The ones outside battling off the spawns of the Minotaur to help save you from this place." Iris choked out. "Rhea and Tethys. They need your help."

  "Ah, well, let’s not keep them waiting shall we?"

  Phoebe stepped over the fallen woman and as she did shot a look her way that made her stomach turn. If not for the fear that another minotaur would pop out, Iris would have laid there on the ground to still herself and stop the urge to vomit.

  "Once again, I've missed all the fun." Phoebe boasted as they watched Delilah take out the last of the minotaurs in a gruesome display. The women turned to the mouth of the cavern to view the moon bathed titan with a terrified Iris by her side.

  "Are you okay?" Delilah asked Iris, completely unconcerned with the being who overshadowed her.

  "Yeah, I'm fine." Iris gave a small nod and a forced smile.

  "Sister!" Rhea boomed as she greeted Phoebe, Tethys however, didn't give the same celebratory welcome. Instead she nodded at the woman and kept her distance. "So good to see you again after all these years."

  "Yes, it’s nice to be able to stretch my legs again!" She laughed as she hugged her sister. "So, anyone care to tell me why we're all here now, and just how long I've been away?"

  "We're here to take out one of those bratty gods, and well, we've be away so long that humans have destroyed the earth."

  "What?" Phoebe looked around as though she would be able to assess the entire planet from that one spot.

  "It's bad," Tethys chimed in. "The waters are polluted, and the earth has been raped of its natural beauty. Humans are a plague upon this beautiful gift."

  "So are we here to make them pay for this?" Phoebe smiled at the thought.

&
nbsp; "No, as fun as that would be," Rhea laughed.

  "We're here for the goddess, Athena. It would seem her actions have hurt one of our own," Tethys nodded to Delilah.

  "I have never seen this girl before. What do you mean to say she is one of our own?" Phoebe examined the strong woman who stood before her.

  "She is the daughter of Medusa, and Poseidon." Rhea rolled her eyes. "My horrible brat of a son."

  "And how has Athena wronged her?"

  "She punished my mother for the sins of my father and sentenced her to death." Delilah answered bluntly.

  "Well, for that I say we definitely need to have a word with the goddess." Phoebe raised a brow. “Those gods, they were always so full of themselves.”

  The conversation was interrupted by the soft chiming coming from the mouth of the cave. Iris stood there with eyes on her, as she pulled the phone from her pocket and lifted it to her ear. Phoebe shot her sisters a questioning look to which they both laughed. "This is the new world my sister!" Rhea hugged her once again.

  "Shit, it looks like Athena might beat us to Themis," Iris ended the call.

  "What?" Delilah’s eyes widened with a mixture of shock and anger. "We can't allow that to happen."

  "I just received a report about the fourth temple. It’s being watched, but there is some odd activity in the area." Iris started typing on the phone's screen. "The scouts have been instructed to hold off on engaging until we know what we're up against."

  "We must go there now." Asa had returned to her masked form. “What’s the plan?”

  “The plane is ready,” Iris kept an eye on Delilah,

  "They're at the original drop zone now, so closer to us. It won't take long to get to them. I've instructed the crew to start driving our way now."

  “The what?” Phoebe tried her best to keep up, but she was far behind on the learning curve.

  “Trust me sister, you’re going to like this.” Rhea laughed and the others joined in. If the way they acted on their first ride was any indication of how Phoebe would be, it was going to be hilarious, for them all. At least this time Phoebe would be the only one fainting.

  “How odd that you're here now, helping us, when you refused us before.” The moon goddess leaned in closely to Iris.

  “I’m sorry?” Iris' drew her attention from the phone in her hand to Phoebe. She had been organizing things for their trip.

  “You're Iris, are you not?” She sniffed the air, “The goddess of rainbows. No one has addressed your involvement here, but I have so many questions.”

  “I was named after her, the goddess, but I am not her,” Iris shrugged. She never understood why her mother thought it fitting to name her after a goddess. After all, that was the reason they were living in Oikos to begin with. They're people wanted to get away from the ones who ruined their lives whenever they saw fit and yet her mother made her one of their namesakes.

  “Named after her, right.” Phoebe began a path of slow circle around the nervous woman. “Messenger to the Olympians. Your sister was on our side, but you took theirs. You helped them defeat us.” She scoffed. "You even have some of the same features in this new form.”

  “Once again I have to apologize but I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Iris' eyes tried to find the others who had left her alone with the newly awakened titan to search the area. Asa was concerned about leaving any unruly minotaur behind in the desert and everyone agreed that it was best to scout the area first before leaving. They'd been gone for all of five minutes when Phoebe, who opted to stay behind with Iris, started giving her a look of suspicion that had yet to leave her face.

  “Do you still serve them?” Phoebe continued her slow path around her target.

  “I’m not sure what you’re talking about. Maybe we can wait for the others to get back and help me understand.” Iris tried to remain as calm as possible. She wanted to snap and tell the woman to back the hell off, but she knew that was a fight she would never win if things went sideways.

  “Answer me!” Phoebe yelled and the sky darkened behind her as if swayed by her passion. “Do you still serve them?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Though still demure, she asserted herself. There was only so much blatant accusation that she would be able to take without losing her cool and Phoebe was quickly approaching her limit.

  “Goddess of Rainbows, how cute that was." She chuckled. "Messenger to the gods, tell me one thing. How else do you intend to explain your being able to see my prison, but no one else could gain visage? That is how you recount it happening, is it not? It is their magic that flows through you and allows you to see!”

  “What’s going on?” The others returned, alerted by Phoebe’s outburst and Iris released the breath that had been locked in her chest. If nothing else, they would make sure the woman who looked at her with murderous intent, didn't harm her ... she hoped.

  “The titan here has lost her marbles.” Iris found the bravery to speak, but took a step back, “She thinks I’m a goddess and I keep telling her that I am not.”

  “We have a traitor amongst us,” Phoebe looked over her shoulder to her sisters.

  “Phoebe what are you saying?” Tethys asked as she followed the pointed finger of her sister to the shocked face of Iris.

  “Can you not sense it? Can you not feel it within this body?” She stepped closer to Iris. “What is it that masks you?”

  She snipped at the woman and bit back when Delilah rushed to position herself between the two of them. “Back off,” she hissed at her and her eyes took on a reptilian state as if she would change.

  “Inside that body is a goddess," Phoebe frowned. She backed up a step knowing if she harmed Delilah, Rhea wouldn't take it so easily. "The goddess lives within this woman, she is there, hidden and waiting.”

  “I am bound to Iris, if she were a goddess I would know it.” Delilah protested.

  “That’s it!” Phoebe was suddenly beaming with her excitement as if she'd solved the world’s greatest puzzle. “Where is the mark that ties you? Show it to me!”

  “What?” Iris stepped back when Phoebe reached for her. Delilah again jumped in the titan's way.

  "Don't touch her," she warned. titan or not, Delilah would protect Iris.

  "Fine, I will not lay a hand on her, but if she is no goddess, like you claim to believe," she challenged Iris who cowered behind Delilah, "then she will have no issue in showing us the link."

  "She owes you no proof. It's because of her that you're even standing here right now," Asa jumped to Delilah's side, standing between the women. "Who are you to demand anything of her?"

  "You're absolutely right young siren, it is because of her, goddess of rainbows and messenger to Olympus that you were able to find me!" Phoebe reiterated her point. "She is the one whose spirit possesses all the shades of the universe. The only one who could have set me free. That is the way my tomb was designed and yet, here we are. Here I am, free, because of her!"

  "It's okay," Iris laid her hand on Delilah's shoulder and pushed between the women who blocked Phoebe’s reach. "I'll do it, whatever it takes to get this over with so we can move on. There is too much at stake to waste any more time on this."

  Delilah and Asa stepped to the side, but both kept their eyes trained on Phoebe. With her shoulders squared, Iris lifted her shirt to reveal the mark on her ribcage. She watched the expression of awe cross every face before her. The snake at her side shivered with Delilah's anger that she was made to expose herself in any fashion.

  A sinister smile stretched across Phoebe's face as she lifted her hand, keeping her promise not to touch Iris, and pointed to the mark. From the tip of her outstretched finger came a stream of moonlight that poured from within her and illuminated the mark.

  Iris shivered as the light chilled the space at her side. Beneath the frosty touch, the snake began to panic, it moved in a tight circle spiraling in on itself. The shock of the cold was followed by a sharp sting that made her scream an
d Delilah pulled her away from Phoebe. Their eyes dropped to Iris’ torso where the marking was still lit though Phoebe no longer provided the light. The highlight clung to the snake that moved across her skin in a flurry.

  "It burns!" Iris cried out and Delilah looked to the titan who smiled widely with glee.

  "What did you do?" Asa demanded. “You hurt her!”

  "What I did was undo the magic that binds this goddess inside of this body." Phoebe looked back to her sister. “Iris was reborn, and now she will be set free!”

  "What?" Rhea stepped forward.

  "Phoebe explain yourself." Tethys shared the same worried expression as the other women around her.

  Before her sister could provide any further explanation, Iris cried out once more and the light lifted from her skin and ripped the serpent from her side as it did. The snake hung in the air, thriving in agony and hissing at the titan who harmed it before it dissolved into nothing. Once the binding was gone, the light returned to its source, Phoebe’s hand. Iris choked on the thoughts that flooded her mind and collapsed to the ground. She lay there, broken just for a moment before her body lifted into the air and floated in front of the five women who watched her in shock. Delilah stepped back not knowing what to do. She wanted to protect her, but it was becoming hard to deny that there was some truth to what the titan told them.

  Her body stretched out in front of them glowing from within. The short hair on her head grew to waist length and took on the colors of the rainbow that danced along the strands before the hair returned to a dark brown. Slowly her body lowered to the ground and she stood suspended in a ghostly manner before the magic faded and she crashed.

  Delilah rushed to her side lifting her head into her arms. She didn’t care about the claims or that the display meant that Iris wasn’t who she said she was. She couldn’t leave her there broken and defenseless.

  “What is this?” Delilah looked up to the smug face of Phoebe.

  “This is the rebirth of a goddess.” Phoebe flared her hands out and bowed as though expecting applause.