by E. B. Black
The truth was, she knew these animals had come to take her children. Poseidon would never trust her to raise these demi-gods by herself and he was stealing them from her. As impractical as it was, she didn't want to let them go. She had just met them and barely given them their names.
Pegasus turned into a small white horse and tumbled from her lap. She had tiny wings on her back that were folded over. She struggled to stand, trembling on her new legs as she limped to the mare. They nuzzled each other's necks as tears dripped down Medusa's face.
She held Chrysaor tightly, even though his struggles had intensified. Chrysaor squealed and then turned into a winged boar. He looked too delicate to survive the desert as he charged towards his new mother.
Medusa stood and ran towards them. She clutched Pegasus by the mane, but Pegasus kicked her. Her own children didn't want her and it was probably in their best interest for things to be that way.
Medusa sobbed. A part of her was happy that she had already found them homes, but another part wondered why she wasn't fighting harder for them. She could never look into their eyes like a normal mother could and they'd have to live in isolation with her, but she would have loved them as much as another mother.
They charged away from her and she chased after them. Unfortunately, her weak limbs cramped up and blood dribbled between her legs as she collapsed.
She watched them disappear in the distance. "Come back! Please!" She reached towards them futilely.
She was happy that her children had not been born in a cave with her sisters. They would have probably met one of their gazes as the three of them cooed over the children and their short lives would have ended when they became rocks.
Perseus rubbed her shoulders and told her that they should camp for the night. Medusa nodded her head and he carried her back to where she gave birth to her children. The ground that had been covered in blood and amniotic fluids had grown into plants and bugs of various kinds, some of which were her favorites. She ripped apart the leaves and chomped down on them to help regain her strength. She couldn't taste them.
Perseus held her. He said nothing, but he didn't need to. Somehow he could sense the fact that she wasn't ready to talk about it yet.
Poseidon had stolen the one good thing she could have gotten out of being raped by him. She ground her teeth. They would have to fight the gods harder.
As they went to sleep that night, Medusa wondered what her kids would grow up to be. She hoped when they found out who their mother was, they would understand why she had given them up and not hate her for the decision.
Chapter 12
Perseus held Medusa as they lay down. Tears dripped from her cheeks. She shivered as he stroked her, finding comfort in his caresses. She couldn't sleep, though–she had too much on her mind.
She waited until Perseus' breathing grew heavy and then lifted his arms gently. He rolled over.
Next to him was the endless wallet. She reached for it, surprised by how light it felt in her hands.
Inside, she found the mirror shield. She caressed it gently and then lifted her helmet off.
The blonde-haired woman she had seen earlier stared back at her. Her blue eyes were anxious. More than anything she wished to hug that woman, the one who was a stranger to her now, and looked so worried about what the future held.
That woman would have been able to keep her babies and marry Perseus if she wanted to. She envied her.
Medusa wished she could hide Perseus in one of her caves. Every minute they spent flying closer to civilization filled her with dread. She was scared that she'd lose Perseus. She was the only woman around at the moment, so of course he thought he had feelings for her, but once he saw other females again and realized just how soft their bodies were, he'd leave her. He loved the woman he saw in the mirror after all, but that wasn't the real her.
She stared at her reflection, memorizing the color of her ivory skin and tint of her rosy cheeks. She watched her eyes and the way they turned cold as ice when she was upset, but melted like a pond when she relaxed. She had seen herself this way so many times when she was a human, but now it was weird.
She tried to become the woman in the mirror. She looked at Perseus and pretended to deserve him. She tried to imagine a life where her babies were still with her. She wished to feel normal, even if it were just for a short while. It didn't work.
She put her helmet back on and curled up next to Perseus. She forced herself to enjoy the moment before it had to end. Soon she was sound asleep.
*** *** ***
It took several weeks of flying and making love before cities popped up in the horizon. Medusa shut her eyes when she saw the first one and chanted under her breath that it would be okay.
They hid from the populations-linking arms and using the cliff faces as cover when they traveled.
Perseus found it easier to get food. They had no money with them and he refused to steal, but these places were inhabited because they had nearby water sources, which meant there were many wild plants to munch on or animals to hunt.
The sky was bright blue, but the sea was restless. Cliffs emerged on the beaches that waves beat against. The jagged edges of the rocks were dark. If Medusa were to fall on them, even her thick skin could be ripped to pieces. The lovers held hands and Medusa smiled as she touched Perseus. He made her feel safe in an otherwise unwelcoming world.
Their happiness was interrupted by a piercing scream. She saw the look on Perseus' face and knew the sound of a frightened woman made him think of his mother.
They flew over rocks until they spotted movement in the distance. The woman was chained to a cliff face inside a cave. She was young and naked. Why, oh why, did she have to be nude?
She was tempted to cover Perseus' eyes, but she was still invisible, so her hands were see-through. It would do no good.
Medusa's body stiffened as they neared. The woman's features took shape. She had dark skin the color of mahogany and black hair that framed her face in ringlets. Her curvy body swayed seductively as she fought against her bonds. Her full lips parted so she could scream. Her dark eyes widened as they approached.
Perseus' eyes flickered over the woman's body. Of course he had noticed her. He wasn't blind. Medusa frowned.
Men wearing robes wandered away from the woman. They chanted as they moved. They had thick accents, but it sounded as if they were saying the word "Ketus" over and over again. She wondered what that was. Maybe they were interrupting some kind of religious ritual.
For the first time, she noticed a town that had been built behind the cliff, protected from the ocean by the giant rock. The town wasn't in good shape. A crumbling castle could be seen in the distance. The mud and brick houses the residents lived in were mostly destroyed, as if a tsunami had hit. Beds had been laid outside, surrounded by temporary shelters built with twigs and leaves. All members of the family, young and old, were working together to form and bake new bricks in the sun.
The marketplace in the middle was small and meager compared with what it must have once been. People shouted to others and held up their merchandise. The ocean was loud, so she couldn't hear their voices, but she could see them moving rapidly.
She admired the way their dark skin shone in the sun. They had the same coloring as the woman.
Perseus landed in front of the cave and walked up to the woman. He yanked at the chains that bound her hands and feet.
"Get me out of here!" she screamed. Her voice was thick with an accent, but she spoke their language fluently. "I will reward you handsomely. I am the princess here. My name is Andromeda and I can give you anything your heart desires."
"I want nothing more than to save you," Perseus said. "Regardless of who you are."
"Now is not the time to be modest. You've been given the opportunity to become wealthy, but first you must rescue me." Andromeda yanked on the chains. "It isn't working! You should use your sword. She'll be here soon and we can't fight the Ketus on our own! All of my father's
warriors have tried!"
He lifted his sword. "I need you to stay still. The more you move, the harder it is to get you out." His sword clanged against her chains as he tried to cut her free.
Andromeda was whimpering. "Why did my mother do this to me? She should have known that blasphemy against the gods would lead to suffering. The city was destroyed all because my mom insisted on claiming that I was more beautiful than the sea goddess."
Medusa's heart pounded. She didn't want to sympathize, but she did. Her mother had done the same thing to her and she would pay the price for it the rest of her life. As much as Perseus' body pressed near this woman made her jealous, she also wished for the woman's freedom.
"I'll be right back," Perseus said. He grabbed Medusa's arm and pulled her outside the cave entrance. He kept up the appearance of leaving for a moment to think.
"I need your help to free her," he mumbled into her ear. He couldn't open his mouth much or he was at risk of Andromeda noticing he was talking to someone.
Medusa was okay with Perseus helping, but resented the idea of assisting a woman that her boyfriend had been staring at, even if she didn't deserve to die.
"I can't," she murmured.
His face twisted. "What do you mean? How could you say such a thing?"
Medusa swallowed. It felt petty now. "You were staring at her when we arrived. I'm afraid that if I help your rescue, you'll fall in love with her instead of me."
He stroked her cheek and his eyes softened. "How could you think I would be so fickle? She may be beautiful, but she isn't you. No one has both the heart and body that you do."
Medusa frowned. "What do you mean 'she may be beautiful'?" Her stomach filled with anxious butterflies.
He didn't have time to answer, though. The villagers had abandoned their work; they were pointing and shouting. The sea gurgled beneath the cliff face and Andromeda's voice grew high and hysterical. She was kicking and screaming.
Perseus grabbed her by both shoulders. "You need to turn the monster into stone."
Medusa bit her lip. "I can't do that anymore. I'll never blend in to normal society if I keep using my powers to solve all your problems. Can't you slay it or something?"
"A whole village full of warriors attempted the same thing and failed."
Medusa sighed. "Fine, but make sure you both shield your eyes. I don't want to take anyone else down, too."
The waves roared as the monster emerged. Water showered down its body as its large teeth neared the entrance to the cave. The giant, black dragon's red eyes bore down on them. Something about the shape of Ketus was familiar, but with sea-weed dripping from it, she couldn't make it out clearly.
Perseus grabbed her hand. "Remember that we're in this together. We'll fight the tyranny of the gods by rescuing their victims. This is just another person who needs our help."
Medusa squeezed his hand and then the two of them pulled apart. Perseus positioned himself in front of Andromeda with his sword raised. "Cover your eyes!"
They both looked away.
The men below ran into their shelters. Families huddled together and held one another. She wasn't just saving one person, but a whole village full of people who had been attacked.
She ripped the helmet off her head. The snakes writhed free, snapping at the air. The giant eel growled loudly as it looked into Medusa's eyes. It screamed and so did she.
With all the water raining from it and the commotion below, she hadn't recognized the monster at first. They had been shouting "Ketus," but she was pretty sure now that they meant to say "Ceto," but mispronounced it because of their accent. This wasn't just any sea monster: it was her mother.
Ceto's face twisted in a way that no mother's should upon seeing her child. Medusa once thought that it was horrible to watch strangers scream when they saw her and their faces freeze in horror. That was nothing compared with this. Her mother's body writhed until it slowly grayed. She turned into the largest snarling statue Medusa had ever seen.
She threw her helmet back on and flew up to her mother. She grabbed her cheek, screamed into her face, and begged her not to die. The waves that slammed against her mother's body made her crumble, but hid Medusa's outbursts in their loud crashes. She had to find a way to fix it, but knew it was hopeless. Her mother's body was breaking apart in her hands and the villagers below were throwing rocks and stealing chunks as they cried out in victory. There was no cure for being a statue.
Medusa had tried to do something good and once again was suffering the consequences for it. It pained her to do this, but there was no alternative. She flew to where she guessed her mother's heart was and ripped out a chunk of stone. It disappeared in her hands because of the invisibility helmet.
She flew from the village and landed in a place so void of life it reminded her of how her heart felt at the moment. She dug into the ground, tears pouring down her cheeks.
"Forgive me," Medusa said. "I turned you into stone and now your soul doesn't exist anymore. It would have been better if I was never your daughter."
She grabbed the piece of her mom that lay nearby and kissed it. She placed it gently in the hole. "You have the biggest heart. Even though you're no longer around, the good things you did for me, like providing for me and holding me when I cried, will never be forgotten."
She covered the piece in the ground with dirt. Even though she'd already lost her mother once to the sea, it hurt to lose her permanently. She hadn't realized how much she depended on the thought of her mother, out there, somewhere, still caring for her.
She would find Perseus and he would hold her. The two of them would leave and never think about this place again.
By the time she arrived, Perseus had managed to saw Andromeda out of her chains. He carried the soft and beautiful woman in his arms. Medusa bit into her lower lip so hard she was bleeding. A part of her wanted to rip the skull on this woman's head off her body. She had not only killed Medusa's mother, but she was stealing her boyfriend! Death would be too good of a punishment for her. She didn't even care about her silent vow not to kill an unarmed person on purpose.
If she acted out, her presence would be revealed to all these people. The gods would find out the truth. Perseus' rebellion against their tyranny would be over. He would be punished and it would probably be assumed that her sisters conspired with her, so they would suffer as well.
She couldn't allow that to happen. She had to bite her tongue for now and wait for revenge at a more opportune time-one where hundreds of other innocents wouldn't be turned into stone as witnesses.
Perseus reached out his arm to stroke Medusa. He mouthed a thank-you to her as he set Andromeda gently on the ground. His eyes were bright and full of love.
It melted Medusa completely. Her hatred turned towards herself and tears poured down her face. She wanted to speak, but she knew if she opened her mouth, even to whisper in Perseus' ear, she would sob. She had just killed her own mother. This was the worst day of her entire life.
They had landed in front of the castle. Medusa hugged herself as numbness threatened to take over. She didn't know how to react to Andromeda giving Perseus a hug and pressing her naked body against his.
"Don't leave me here." Andromeda had grabbed Perseus by his chiton. "These people aren't my real family because they failed to love me like one. They didn't fight for me. They sent me to die to save their own lives." Andromeda looked into Perseus' eyes with adoration. "You, on the other hand, were a stranger who acted like a hero. Take me with you away from here."
Medusa shook all over. The temptation to slap Andromeda overwhelmed her. Medusa's mother had betrayed her as well and unlike Andromeda, she had actually been forced to suffer the consequences for it, but she wished to have her mother back. Andromeda should be thankful that her own mother was still alive. Only a brat could think differently.
Perseus shoved her so roughly that she almost fell over. "My rescue was not an attempt at seduction."
Andromeda pouted.
They entered the castle and the servants inside scattered around wildly in search of some new clothes. All of them were dressed in loin-cloths, which couldn't possibly keep them warm enough in the winter. Sadly, they were paid so little that the rags were all they could afford. No one seemed to care about their skimpy clothing.
Medusa looked at all the carvings on the walls and statues in the castle. She remembered when she had been starving herself and forced into prostitution. This marble and gold was excessive. No wonder Andromeda was full of herself; this castle was decorated like a temple to a goddess.
Pictures of their gods were everywhere. In this place, the gods all had animal parts and barely resembled humans. She had heard that the gods were the same, but appeared in different forms when they visited other civilizations. She looked at each portrait and wondered which figure belonged to whom. One was a black cat that looked as if she was going to jump off the wall and cut her neck. Medusa smiled. That had to be Athena.
Two beautiful people with purple robes hanging from their bodies and elaborate eyeliner entered the area. They wore rings on every finger. Crowns rested on the top of their heads. This must be the king and queen.
Andromeda was dressed, but still trying to drape herself all over Perseus, who kept shifting away from her.
They introduced themselves as Cephus and Cassiopeia. They asked for Perseus' name and told him that they would be retrieving the monster's head and dipping it in gold in his honor. They couldn't just hurt Medusa's family-they had to do it lavishly. They thanked him repeatedly while Andromeda glared coldly at them.
"You must stay overnight," King Cephus said. "We will have a feast in your honor."
More than anything Medusa wanted to leave so she could mourn in private. Her forehead wrinkled as she tried to communicate this to Perseus with her mind.
"That would be wonderful," Perseus said.
She failed.
The servants ran around, spreading word about the feast, but many people were already there, eager to meet the man who had saved their lives. They filed in and out so quickly, Medusa couldn't relax. She wove back and forth, avoiding the ones that tried to charge straight through her. She was tired of being invisible already.