by Simon Archer
“It says something about defying orders, which I know you wouldn’t do without good reason,” Sarah continued to scold me. “What was your reason?”
“They wanted me to testify against my lover and help charge her for something she didn’t do,” I saw as I continued to watch the necklace glow whiter in the light of the Eternal Flame. “I wouldn’t do it.”
“Hmph,” Sarah grunted. The older woman stuck her arms in the front of her overalls and pushed out her pelvis in a power stance. My eyes flicked towards her, a tense silence overcoming the room as she made up her mind about everything. “Sounds like a good enough reason to me. But what are we going to do about your falsely convicted friend?”
“Apparently, he’s trying to release the goddess Harmonia from Jade’s cursed necklace,” Beth said as she leaned over to Sarah like she was telling her a secret.
Sarah’s mouth opened, and her eyebrows raised. But a second later, she closed it again, and her face flattened out to one of agreement. “If you say that’s going to help, then tell me what I need to do to help.”
“Actually, I think we should be able to do it right now,” I said as I eyed the necklace which now gleamed a bright white in the middle of the Eternal Flame’s bloody red.
I yanked the necklace out of the forge, and Sarah winced at the sight of my bare hand in the middle of the flames.
“I hate it when you don’t wear protection,” Sarah said as she rolled her eyes to the ceiling.
I didn’t bother responding to her because we’d had this argument too many times already, and it would be a waste of time. I simply put the necklace, white-hot as it was, on the anvil. Then I picked up my hammer from off the side and raised it in the air.
“Gods dammit boy,” Sarah exclaimed, her voice jolting me to a halt. “If you plan on smashing that thing apart, at least wear eyewear.”
“Sarah,” I groaned. “We don’t have time for that.”
“Yeah, you tell me that when you become a Cyclops, okay?” Sarah clapped back at me as she moved to the workbench and tossed me a pair of goggles. “Why don’t all of you put some on? We don’t know how this magical jewelry is going to react.”
I had to bend down to catch the eyewear she threw, while I left the hammer on the anvil. I snapped them over my face and held out my hands, awaiting Sarah’s approval before I continued. She nodded and waved her hand so that I could move on.
I leveled the necklace on the edge of the anvil, aiming to hit it right on the corner so that with one hard smack, I should be able to snap the chain in half. The snakes were strategically placed to take the brunt of the hit.
Finally, I raised the hammer and thought about all of the frustration from this semester, the injustice done to my friend, and the manipulation of campus throughout these last several weeks. Then I lowered my arm with a hefty swing.
The metal banged against one another with a sharp clang. I nailed the chain right in the sweet spot and nearly leapt out of my shoes, I was so excited. However, when I pulled the chain away, I could see that it was still connected.
Nothing broke.
I readjusted and aimed to hit the chain again. And again. And again. Finally, when I began pounding away on the piece of jewelry with reckless abandon, Sarah interrupted me.
“You have to reheat it,” Sarah reminded me. “Plus, I don’t think all that hammering is working.”
“Maybe I should try,” Hailey offered. Mine and Sarah’s head snapped up to her, shooting daggers with our glares. “Look, I’m not trying to be arrogant here, but I am stronger than you, Cameron. At least let me try.”
We let everyone try, even Beth and Daniella, who were clearly not stronger than Hailey or me. Or even Sarah, for that matter. After we determined the hammer didn’t work, we moved onto other destructive items. We tried to crush it in the forceps but nearly broke the handle from tightening it too much. We took it to the grinder at all different levels. However, the chain never even thinned against the rapid machine. The electric hammer had no success either. The only thing that flew out at us were sparks as the hammer pounded on the unmoving necklace.
I tried coaxing the Eternal Flame to blast its temperatures, but no matter how many colors the Flame changed as it altered its temperature, the necklace never cracked under the heat.
We even let the dogs play with the chain for a bit, using it like a chew toy or a rope for tug-of-war, but eventually, even they grew tired of the thing.
Daniella came up with the idea of pulling it apart versus smashing it. We pulled on it, two on either side. When that didn’t work, the five of us grabbed on as best as we could while one end was tied to the forceps. The only thing that broke was our tailbones as we clattered to the ground after pulling too hard.
I scrambled up to my feet and grabbed the necklace. “What the fuck is wrong with this thing?” I scrunched it up in my hand until the edges of the metal pressed into my skin.
“It’s a magical cursed necklace made by Hephaestus,” Daniella said as she slowly rose to her feet. “What makes you think it would be easy to break?”
“There has to be a way!” I exclaimed, my frustration bubbling to the surface. “I don’t even know if Jade’s still on campus. She could be brainwashed already, stuck in the middle of nowhere with no idea who we are or how she got there!”
Hailey got up and crossed over to me. She tried to put a hand on my shoulder, but I jerked out of her grasp, fuming too much to be physically comforted at the moment. But Hailey didn’t look hurt at my rejection. She actually appeared to understand with the way her face softened.
“Why don’t I go check on things? See if we can’t get a better timeline?”
I sniffed, fighting back tears of anger and frustration, and nodded at her, sure that if I used my voice, it would crack and I would break. Hailey didn’t say anything but gave me a knowing look before she left.
The rest of us watched her leave in silence as our brains sifted through new ways to break this thing. The Eternal Flame continued to blaze in the forge, but its color had cooled to a baby blue like it was resting.
I put my hands on my hips and stared at my friends and my mentor. “What haven’t we tried?”
“Do we have any liquid nitrogen?” Beth asked randomly.
We all stared at her with confused glances when Beth sighed in exasperation. “You know what I’m talking about. Like how science teachers used to put, like ping-pong balls or bananas or goldfish in liquid nitrogen and then smash them on the table.”
“Your science teacher killed a goldfish in front of you?” Daniella exclaimed, appalled and disgusted by the idea of fish murder.
“Not a real fish,” Beth clarified frantically. “Like one of those squishy bath toys, you know.” Beth clamped his hands together, mimicking the motion.
“We don’t have any liquid nitrogen,” I blurted out, stopping their conversation in its tracks. “And we don’t have time to freeze it. There has to be something else. We’re just not thinking of it.”
“Cameron,” Sarah said, and I could hear the caution in her voice, but I didn’t want her lectures right then.
“I know, okay? I know I’m being harsh and brash, but Jade’s whole life is at stake, and it’s my fault. I need to make sure that we do everything we can to help her and if all I have to do just break open this damn necklace, then--”
Surprising even myself, I threw the thing across the room with a roar emanating from deep in my chest. The piece of jewelry skidded to a stop nearby the door of the forge.
Which hung open and revealed Aphrodite, the goddess of love and desire, standing in the doorway.
36
All four of us stared in shock at the goddess Aprhodite as she stood in the doorway. But Aphrodite stood where she was and instead bent over to pick up the necklace that I had carelessly thrown at her feet.
There was a tense silence as the god peered at the jewelry. Her lips bent into a slight frown as she held the gold chain up to the light. Then she shrugged
and stepped fully into the room. Her eyes wandered over all of the tools and the machinery with quiet indifference. She clasped her hands together behind her back as she mozied about.
“You know,” she said in her soft and melodic voice, “I never bothered coming to forge before. It always seemed like a drab and dirty place. Utterly unromantic. But this is quite nice, now that I look at it.”
Sarah and I shared an uneasy glance. I didn’t know how to respond to Aphrodite’s observations. Was I supposed to say thank you? Or kick her out? Tackle her and tie her down, so she didn’t run to the Elemental Officials and tell them where I was? As if we could manage to take down a goddess, an Olympic goddess at that. Instead, my voice seemed stuck in my throat, and I remained silent as I waited for Aphrodite’s next move.
“I believe this is yours,” the goddess of desire said as she held out the necklace to me.
When I didn’t respond right away, Aphrodite raised her soft eyebrows, and the corner of her lips twitched expectantly. I held up my hand, open palm, and Aphrodite dropped the necklace into it. The chain curled along my lifelines, like a worm.
“You know there are people looking for you, yes?” Aphrodite asked lightly.
“I’m aware,” I said, my voice weaker than I would have liked it to be. “Are you here to turn me in?”
“Oh no, dear Cameron,” Aphrodite exclaimed, with an offended hand on her chest. “I recruited Sasha Manuel and her nymphs. We have been keeping them away from this place. When one of the nymphs came and told me that you burned down the apple orchard with the Eternal Flame, I figured your time would be better served helping with the crisis than locked up for something silly like disobeying the Stratego.” Aphrodite waved her hand nonchalantly. “I was told it was quite a spectacle, your bonfire. I bet it smelled great.
“So,” I hesitated. “You’re not here to turn me in?”
“Of course not,” Aphrodite confirmed. “But I came here to warn you that they are planning to erase your friend’s memories in less than thirty minutes, and then they’ll double down on finding you. I don’t know how much longer we can hold them off.”
“Fuck,” I muttered as I physically stamped my foot. My hand curled around the necklace again while my free hand ran down my face.
I was out of ideas, and hopelessness began to settle in my stomach like a comfortable cat with no intent of leaving. My mouth ran dry as I thought about how I failed my friend. I pressed the heel of my hand against my forehead and inhaled sharply.
“Cameron,” Daniella said softly.
“Shut up. I’m thinking,” I snapped.
“Hey, not okay,” Daniella called me out as she stuck a sharp finger in my face. “We want to help Jade, too, okay? You’re not the only one who's frustrated.”
“I’m sorry,” I sighed as I lowered my hand. “I just don’t know what to do anymore. I thought that, with the Eternal Flame and my tools, I might have the power to destroy it, but…” My voice trailed off as my confidence faded. I sighed heavily and continued on, defeated. “Maybe this stupid Necklace of Harmonia can’t be destroyed. That’s why no one else did it over the past several hundred years.”
“Nothing is indestructible,” Sarah said like a mantra. “Everything always has a weakness.”
Aphrodite clicked her tongue knowingly. I shot the woman a glare, no longer caring that she was technically my superior as a goddess, and she had supposedly helped me evade capture. I pursed my lips and held back a snarl.
“Care to share with the class, Aphrodite?” Sarah beat me to the punch, snapping at the god like she was just any other person and not a superior, supernatural being
“I just think that Cameron is selling himself short,” Aphrodite said with an innocent shrug.
When she didn’t elaborate, Sarah coughed and waved her hand at the goddess of desire, prompting her onward. Aphrodite sighed dramatically and crossed her arms while stroking her hair with one hand.
“I believe he has the power to destroy this necklace, if that is what is needed to do,” Aphrodite said. “He’s just using the wrong power.”
“The wrong power?” Sarah blinked at her colleague. “What the hell are you talking about?”
But I could guess what Aphrodite was referring to. My mouth opened inadvertently, amazed at what she was getting at. “But, I don’t even know how to control that power. It just kind of happens. We talked about this.”
“Okay, I know I’ve been out of it for a while, but from what I remember, Cameron has fire powers, am I missing something?” Beth asked the room with a comic tone, though I could tell her question was serious.
“Ever wonder why your friend has the uncanny ability to just pull myths out of thin air?” Aphrodite said as she curled her hand in the air like she was waving it through smoke.
“He’s just really smart?” Beth replied, though her voice showed her obvious hesitation.
“He has the Sight and can dip into that power to see things of the past,” Aphrodite said, ignoring Beth’s answer.
Daniella and Bethany looked at me expectantly and slightly insulted. I looked at them blankly. “I didn’t know it was a thing until she told me it was. Then it just never really came up.”
“Except for now,” Aphrodite jumped in. She clapped her hand together. “I bet you can tap into the past of that particular necklace and figure out how to destroy it.”
“But it’s never been destroyed before now,” I growled, my annoyance surfacing at Aphrodite’s all-knowing and arrogant demeanor.
“Why don’t you just have a little look?” Aphrodite prompted with a smug grin.
“We don’t have time for this!” I protested, waving my arms about in frustration. “You just said we only have thirty minutes--”
“Less than thirty minutes,” Aphrodite corrected.
“Exactly!” I snapped at her. “We don’t have time for your games and vague hints. If you’re some snazzy god, why don’t you just tell me how to destroy it?”
I realized I’d made a misstep the minute the words left my mouth. I’d just let my frustration get the better of me and insulted an Olympic goddess. I closed my eyes and held my breath, fear making my heart stop. If I had thought that Aphrodite was going to help us before now, I had just single-handedly ruined any chance the goddess had of actually helping us out of this situation.
I opened my eyes to find Aphrodite inches from my face, breathing sharp and pointed breaths that smacked against my skin like pinpricks. She had her pointer finger pressed against my chest, bruising me with a slight amount of pressure. When she spoke, her voice was low, only a few steps from a grumble.
“Because you helped me restore my most prized possession, I’m going to let that one go,” Aphrodite threatened. “But make no mistake, son of Hephaestus, I am helping you. It is your choice whether or not to listen. I know you’re prone to disobedience, but it would be unwise to ignore my advice.”
I stared into her golden eyes and held them for as long as I could. But the sheer power of him tapped into a base instinct of mine. This was a predator, and I was prey beneath her. Despite our closeness over the time when we developed the girdle, our week was a blip in the life of this immortal. She could squash me like a bug, and I noticed that she used immense restraint not to at that moment.
So I decided to oblige her and offer a soft nod, while my eyes shifted down to the floor. I put my pride on a shelf and left Aphrodite to step back. She swept her hair back from her face, and her face fell into a comfortable and confident smile.
“Now, you don’t have a lot of time yet, and you said it yourself, you’re running out of options,” Aphrodite’s nostrils flared. “Why don’t you give my idea a try?”
My gaze looked down at the necklace in my hand. The chain looked so delicate and tiny. How could something so small be giving us so much trouble? How could it be so indestructible?
I thought back to what Sarah had said about everything having a weakness. As I stared down at the gold chain, I decided t
o ask the piece of jewelry.
What’s your weakness? How do I defeat you?
Once again, my vision narrowed in, turning black around the edges. The telescopic view honed in on a familiar scene. I had been expecting to see something from back during Ancient Greece, but this was a modern picture. There were people milling around in modern attire, with their smartphones in their hands. There were food trucks and booths with different vegetables.
Holy shit! It was the farmers market that I worked at over the summer. The answer to how to destroy the Necklace of Harmonia was at the local farmer’s market? How the hell did that work?
The image panned to two instantly familiar faces that sat knee to knee on a park bench under the shade of one of the few trees in the market. It was my mom and me.
I nearly jumped out of the vision, I was so shocked. What was happening? Then I heard the tune, and I had a solid guess where I thought this was headed. This was the same moment that my mom had sang the weird song that sounded more like a prophecy than a random tune. Was the answer buried in the lyrics? Like it had been with the dress?
I closed my mouth and opened my ears, waiting for her to repeat the song. Mom put her hand on my knee, and I prompted her with the silly tune. Her eyes glazed over, just like they had the first time.
“Oh la de dah de dah de dah, la de dah de dah
Many adventures to come
For you my son dear.
Like a gross infection
On campus will appear.
A distraction, it will be.
Do not fret at all.
Though solve it you must,
Or a friend will fall.
Oh la de dah de dah de dah, la de dah de dah
