The Gift From Poseidon: When Gods Walked Among Us (Volume 2)
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THE GIFT FROM POSEIDON
When Gods Walked Among Us:
Volume Two
ALSO BY J.A. GINEGAW
The Fifth Codex
When Gods Walked Among Us: Volume 1
A Crimson Shadow Cast (Early 2016)
When Gods Walked Among Us: Volume 3
The Gryphon Exodus (Late 2016)
When Gods Walked Among Us: Volume 4
THE GIFT FROM POSEIDON
BY
J.A. GINEGAW
ILLUSTRATIONS BY
TIFFANY KUAN
When Gods Walked Among Us:
Volume Two
Text Copyright © 2015 by J.A. Ginegaw
Illustrations Copyright © 2015 by Tiffany Kuan
The events and incidents contained in this publication can be neither confirmed nor denied in either their totality or their partiality. It can be confirmed, however, that they are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Furthermore, any resemblance of characters to actual persons – known to be living, barely living, almost dead, or confirmed dead – is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission of both the copyright holder and the publisher.
ISBN-13: 978-1517310714
ISBN-10: 1517310717
The Gift from Poseidon • Kindle Edition v1.2
Five codices of copper encased in gold,
Sapiens rising, the prophecy foretold,
Magic harvested from the
darkest roots of a world long past.
Sinister strings woven from my frost-drenched heart,
Ensnare fleshy puppets playing well their part,
The golden prairies of Lapith Fields
cringe as doomed armies mass.
Death partaken serves a feast of dead men’s screams,
Ruined mystics grant reborn children’s dreams,
As rage united splinters the
shields of warriors aghast.
Mighty crowns awash in guiltless blood and gore,
Heathen gods free to walk among us no more,
Desdessandra’s timeless wrath
unleashed, a crimson shadow cast.
Untold secrets spoken set free hurting cries,
Mourning rains plunge from sorrow-blackened skies,
Whilst the breaking of our world
brings forth the end of days – at last.
– The Witch Queen
CONTENTS
MAPS
IN THE BEGINNING
ONE
Submission
TWO
Procession of Nations
THREE
Friendly Enemies, Dangerous Friends
FOUR
Harpastum
FIVE
Eruption
SIX
Feed the Gods
SEVEN
The Last Leaf Falls
EIGHT
Suffering
NINE
Laying Down the Law
TEN
Permanent Recollections
ELEVEN
The Gift from Poseidon
TWELVE
Stressed to Impress
THIRTEEN
A Bold Approach
FOURTEEN
Legend Forged and Thrust Forth
FIFTEEN
An Enchanted Wariness
SIXTEEN
A Tiny Treasure
SEVENTEEN
The Golden Clepsydra
EIGHTEEN
Don’t Pet the Troll
NINETEEN
Just a Bit of Fun
TWENTY
A Grim Wish Granted
TWENTY-ONE
It’s Complicated
TWENTY-TWO
Invitations and a Journey West
TWENTY-THREE
A Covetous Mind
TWENTY-FOUR
Adventures in Eating
TWENTY-FIVE
Stalking Poseidon’s Gift
TWENTY-SIX
Red Sky in Mourning
TWENTY-SEVEN
Bloody Pieces to a Gruesome Puzzle
TWENTY-EIGHT
A Day to be Thankful
TWENTY-NINE
Second Impressions
THIRTY
A Path Becomes Her
THIRTY-ONE
Chances Are
THIRTY-TWO
A Certain Point of View
THIRTY-THREE
A Glorious Entrance
THIRTY-FOUR
A Shameful Exit
THIRTY-FIVE
Winning Time
THIRTY-SIX
A Sunrise Surprise
THIRTY-SEVEN
The Sneak, the Scribe, and the Spell
THIRTY-EIGHT
Deceptively Deadly Demands
THIRTY-NINE
Two Souls Enter, One Soul Leaves
IN THE BEGINNING
We were gods once. Gifted with great magic and long life, thousands of Sapiens walked my world. But that which was, no longer is. And that which now is, could not have come to be if not for our downfall. I am Komnena, the last Sapien historian. Just how do I know of our beginning, our approaching end, and so many grand tales in between? Because I was there when much of it happened. Because no others remain who can reveal to you a world that existed before the one you now know.
For reasons lost to history or simply before it – my ancestors were banished! Although the true gods love death as much as mortals love life; just this once, the ethereal enigmas somehow found the strength to temper their morbid lust. Sentenced to die, these men and women wandering the tundra in barely more than their skin stumbled upon not their demise, but paradise.
Terra Australis unlike anything these mindless, hopeless wretches had ever seen; from the most fearsome to the most charming, field and forest alike overflowed with all manner of life. Ten centuries came and went, yet aside from growing in numbers, these simpletons achieved nothing of note atop this lush land. My world deserved better, and the gods would reward her patience.
Brown and orange of rock and flame suddenly consumed the skies; for many days, stone ablaze bombarded Terra Australis. Most too stupid to stay hidden, these wretches fled in every direction and from every direction were turned into ash. A fog not of mist, but of fire, swept across the land and consumed all life foolish enough to cross its path. Smoke and flame devoured most, but a few of the strongest survived.
A single body of water – a small lake – stayed clean amongst this wrecked filth. Its waters glittered, glimmered, even moved in unnatural ways. Despite tiny creatures wiggling about these waters, parched mouths continued to drink, and the survivors huddled around the Pool of Torment and Discovery as if waiting for the Grim to collect the rest of them.
But gifts would come instead.
Surrounded by chaos, a new dawn lit the horizon. Eyes blurred by misery looked upon a world still broken, but suddenly bendable to their will. And to their will they bent it. Wretchedness began to wonder, wonder led to learning, learning brought about seeking to own an existence above mere survival, and the Rise of Sapiens begat the Knowing Time.
The first great sorceress, Cynisca, united the scattered tribes four centuries later. Her mystic might came by way of a secret others had yet to learn: Potions cannot hold spells for long, but charmed objects of a fantastic nature and enchanted dust made of rare things forever can. Those who resisted her rule turned into stone; she built the foundation of the first great city, Elkabydos, upon their backs. To push the boundaries of
magic, she brought together the land’s most talented mystics and established the Magic Guild of the Sapien Realm. Queen Cynisca rode to the crown on a wave of war, but her queenship would bring to Terra Australis a prosperous peace. A peace forever broken once enough mystics learned how to call upon magic that dwells in the darkest roots of the world.
Mystic rage rarely the right answer, it became the common one. Greed – jealousy – envy – revenge, some temptations are simply too great to resist. Even when misused, no matter how heinously, wrathful gods do not steal back their gifts – they turn them against you. This time would be no different. By way of pestilence, pettiness, and ruinous wars against both ourselves and the other nations, the Fall of Sapiens began.
Mermaids and Gryphons of the West and Centaurs and Arachna Majora of the East dominate Terra Australis now. Elkabydos abandoned long ago, we few Sapiens still left occupy the northernmost prefecture of the shared city, Antediluvium.
You are no doubt saddened to hear of our stunning decline, but temper your pity for us. Some still skilled with magic, my sorceress queen far beyond driven to cast a crimson shadow upon our world, an ancient prophecy that promises to plunge the other nations into eternal darkness so Sapiens can rise again.…
We are not dead yet.
Chapter One
SUBMISSION
Greatness is in no way random. It must be sought after, pursued, captured. The Orcas that surround me filling my heart with terror – I throw my head back and laugh anyway. The massive Gryphon who would be king looks at his razor-sharp talons, then the naked Mermaid he imagines shredding with them – I demand his submission regardless. All others simply come of age, but not this future queen. I’ve come to mold and make my own the Age we were born into.
– Diedrika, Mermaid Princess
– Late Spring, Year 4,233 KT[1]
“I know that look, Diedrika. I’ve seen it before. I would beg Poseidon to steal away the shadowy stare that so easily finds your face, but he would just laugh in my own face if I did. So here we are, yet again: Your mind seeks to go where no one dares follow and your heart aches to take it there.”
Diedrika breathed out a fake smile – her Queen Mother was right, of course. But this was not so bad. Many things required hiding, but some things never would: Her attraction to power, great respect for those who could do what few could and outright indifference for the rest, a grand promise she would make to them all the first day she sat upon the throne.
Dinner devoured and the picnic with her parents near its end, Diedrika turned away from her mother and set her eyes upon the majestic power now frolicking about the waves. The majestic power she craved for herself.
“Beautiful beyond compare, they live in families just like us. I often hear their clicks and squeaks ripple through the waters – in their own way, they speak to each other. Just like us. And if a Mermaid has ever been killed or even wounded by one, I have never heard of it. Considering all these wonderful things, why do you so fear Orcas, Mother?”
“Because you don’t,” Andromeda snapped back.
Diedrika turned to her father, Perseos. His colorful tail uncovered like hers, he looked his usual dashing self in a sky blue tunic trimmed in gold. As Perseos stroked a beard few Mermaids dared wear, Diedrika caught him shoot a quick glance at Andromeda before he again focused on her.
“My dear daughter, it is because of this fear no Orca has yet to take a Mermaid’s life.” Perseos tipped his head down, but kept his stern stare steady. “Although one bold enough, foolish enough, to violate this caution could very well be the first.”
“They are the size of ten snow bison,” Andromeda added as Diedrika again set her gaze on the group of whales breaching and splashing about. “Traveling in packs, preying upon any creature that dares to cross their path – ravenous wolves not of the land, but of the sea. And have you seen them play with their food? Even while their prey still draws breath, an Orca will just catapult a penguin or sea lion through the air!” Andromeda chuckled. “Although even I must admit, that is quite a sight.”
Diedrika nodded at her mother’s words, but did not turn to her – she instead kept her eyes affixed on the pod. The sun swiftly dropping into the sea now cast a pleasing orange glow upon them all.
“Yes, Mother, you are correct in all you say. Nevertheless,” she inhaled deeply; her pitch became more serious, almost smitten, “… their show of power – an effortless power – is intoxicating to watch. I can feel it emanate across the waters … crash into the beach with reckless abandon … flow through me with great vigor as if trying to teach me how to use it.”
Diedrika turned to her mother and assessed her blank expression. She then did the same to her father, returned to meet Andromeda’s now icy glare, unleashed her fakest smile yet, and threw her hands into the air.
“Alas, I am just a Mermaid.”
*****
“Good morning, Princess!” Penelope said breathlessly as she let Diedrika into her chambers. Although she was not part of the royal family – not by blood anyway – as the Mermaid historian, Penelope lived in the palace as well.
“And a beautiful morning it is, sweet Penelope! Even better, I have ordered breakfast for us and it’s on the way.”
As Diedrika glided through the doorway, an oversized clepsydra molded from just as much silver as bronze rang out eight bellowing chimes. It was a good deal earlier than she normally woke – noon would not arrive for another two full turns – but an excited mind had a way of putting tired eyes to bed. And if there was ever a day for excitement to ripple through Diedrika, today was it.
Their breakfast delivered and seated at a quaint table – Poseidon’s tail did Penelope eat! Enough food to fill the bellies of three fat Mermaids having disappeared from heaping, but now empty plates, Diedrika just looked in awe at Penelope. Skinnier than most Mermaids – where it all went was anyone’s guess. Diedrika chuckled as she thought this, refilled their goblets, and got right to the point.
“If I were to suggest that you have had precious little to write about on those shiny copper plates of yours, would I be correct?”
Penelope seemed amused at this question and smiled. “You have suggested correctly, my future queen. When not writing about you, it seems that I am only left with markedly more exciting things to scribe about like yet another newly carved sculpture or fountain that is little different from any others scattered about the city.” Penelope sighed. “I thought that when I became historian I would be scribing about, well, history. Meaningful history, at least. Perhaps you have you come to relieve me of this cantankerous writer’s block?”
Diedrika loved Penelope for her humor and quick wit. Although nearly a decade older, she thought of her as an older sister more than a historian. Every Mermaid ever born possessed a shade of red hair and emerald green eyes, but beyond these two traits, they even looked a bit alike. And thank the gods for Penelope – Diedrika’s one true friend – because it gave her all the excuses she ever needed to stay away from her idiot brothers, Betrugen and Verrator.
“Most definitely,” Diedrika laughed aloud as she rose up, “even if it kills me.”
And it just might!
Diedrika glided to the door, but then spun around once she reached it. Still seated, Penelope just gawked at her. “I’ll be back a couple of full turns before dusk. A little adventure for just you and me – what say you?”
“As there is no more exciting Mermaid to be in the company of, I’ll be right here waiting for you. And just where will we be going, Princess?”
“Somewhere special.”
“What will we do when we get there?”
“Something special.”
“And why will we – oh, don’t bother answering, I already know: ‘Because somehow, someway, it’ll be special!’”
“To do what no Mermaid has ever done before – be ready, my friend!” Diedrika called out as she glided through the door and hurried away before Penelope could ask her any more questions.
The morning and afternoon were gone before Diedrika knew it – full turns of the clepsydra tended to pass quickly when spent gathering your courage the entire time.
Penelope retrieved, they headed northeast in a small carriage led by two palominos. A full turn or so after they had departed, but still at least a full turn before sunset, they reached their destination: The same shores Diedrika had shared a picnic with her mother and father the day before.
Although Penelope asked Diedrika more questions on the way than there were grains of sand on the beach they now glided on, she had deflected every one of them. Now where sand met sea, the cool, bubbly foam soaking Diedrika’s scales tickled the lower third of her tail pressed flush to the ground. Time to reveal her plans to Penelope – she began to do so. More than once Penelope’s lower jaw dropped onto the sand as if a clumsy puppeteer was in control of her facial expressions, but Diedrika politely set it back where it belonged each time. Her plan revealed, she gawked at Penelope in glorious anticipation….
“You’re going to do what?” Penelope screeched as her cream-colored palla fell from her head.
Diedrika just nodded happily.