Morning light tranquilly spilled across Sarpedon like the waters of a clear mountain spring. It flowed into the crevices and holes between old crumbling stone and gathered in circular spots. A particular sizeable circle of light was created in the small garden house that had been tirelessly built by the two inhabitants of the island. Its crooked windows allowed the gentle stream of light to enter its confines for the sake of feeding the greedy plants inside with their favorite life giving rays.

The door to the garden stood wide open so that the cool morning air could come through. Standing inside the frame was the young woman who took care of the plant growth with tenacious dedication. She had just completed her morning stretches and was ready to start her daily inspection. It would be fatal if she missed some incident that could have harmed the plants during her absence.

But today she was not alone. Her partner was not the familiar snake woman that would drag her tail through the earth and leave behind curved tracks, but rather a guest whose sandals left no imprints at all.

“Palla’s Garden it says. Did you construct this little thing all on your own?” Aphrodite asked with mild curiosity. Her playful gaze had been stuck on the plate at the door only for a moment, but it must have been clear to her that it was still quite new compared to everything else on the island. This shoddy construction inspired no confidence in the professionalism of those who erected it either.

“Medusa did the heavy lifting. I just made the plans.” Eugenia replied humbly and squatted down to pat the loose earth, searching for any rabbit holes.

“There is a hole over there.” She pointed at the wall.

“I know.” She sighed in response.

“There is not much space for real growth, but the air in here is rather clean and gentle.” The goddess took a step inside and seemingly caressed the air. “The soil hums. Recent death has given way to new sprouts of life everywhere.”

“You could tell?” Eugenia was perplexed for a second until she realized who she was talking to.

“Fertile lands are my specialty. It would bring shame upon my name if I could not see the quality of the grounds around me.” She said proudly. Naturally she was the goddess of fertility, but most would not come to her to pray for a good harvest these days.

Such insolent thoughts were better kept to oneself.

“Do you hydrate them enough, dear?” Aphrodite stroked the leaves of a larger growth.

“Every day.” She nodded.

“Truly. Then the distribution is not even across the soil. Underground sinkholes must be siphoning away the necessary drink for this poor thing.” She spoke with certainty, which meant it must have been true. Who would dare object her assessments?

“I see! So that’s why the earth dries so quickly.” She nodded energetically.

“There is not enough space for the roots to spread out, so they tangle here… and here.” She pointed at two seemingly random spots. “Humans are so uncouth with nature’s gifts. My dear Artemis shall weep again if I tell her of this.”

Eugenia tried not to think anything blasphemous when hearing that. She failed. Did Artemis, the great and respected huntress have such a frail composure? Ever since she had come to Sarpedon her image of the gods had just been shattered like old earthenware on hard rocks, but she could not bear to hear such disappointing things about Artemis too. She was too imposing. Zosimos would have been heartbroken if he heard this.

“She may also come here personally to destroy it all.” Aphrodite added casually. Upon seeing Eugenia’s pale face she chuckled. “I merely jest.”

“That’s mean.” She exhaled her tension, but could only feel a bit let down.

“Much like the scented waters, such gardens can cleanse my spirits. I can feel the energy flowing through my veins~” Aphrodite stretched in a heart pounding way and then twirled elegantly through the morning light. Her grace was lost on her blind audience, but Eugenia did take note of her movements towards the exit. “This is exciting!” She suddenly spoke up again.

“Sorry, what is?” The girl rose up and turned back to her. Her ears picked up a strange creaking and grinding noise. It was somewhat similar to the sound of drawing a rope across wood on a boat or the rustling of twigs in the forest winds. Soon she learned that the latter comparison was very close.

The wall of the small building shook a little when something large brushed against it and then cracked when the collision decided the weaker force. What had just grown outside and inside the building had lost the contest and left behind splintered branches on the soil.

“Olives, hm? Considering where we are I could have hazarded a guess. Little Athena surely loves them more than any other tree.”

“Did… did trees just grow out of the earth?” Eugenia asked dryly.

“Olive trees.”

The prickling sensation spread through Eugenia’s feet and between her toes. She could sense it on several levels, from the sudden smell of fresh grass to the previous loud creaking and the changed airflow. Wherever the goddess stepped with her dainty feet, life sprung forth like a violent explosion. First it burst out of the soil and then it rippled in circles around her, finally calming at the edges of her sphere of influence where they shrank back.

The garden was unrecognizable. It was as if all the hidden roots of plants long dead had taken a divine breath and forced themselves upwards. Nothing could compare to the two olive trees that had sprang up though.

“I have redistributed the nutrients in the ruins next to this garden to give these two children some encouragement.” She stroked the tree bark alluringly and then plucked an olive. “Hmhm, a bit overripe, just as I adore them.”

“This is madness.” Eugenia put her fingers to the tree inside the garden and could hardly contain her disbelief.

“Do you disapprove? Perhaps because they remind you of your former mistress?” Aphrodite was acting strangely empathetic and seemed to consider the consequences of her actions.

“Not at all, I like them.” She assured her. It was just really overwhelming, but that emotion was soon surpassed.

“I wonder how the snake will react.” Her smirk was subtle, but even Eugenia could sense it somehow. Having a symbol of Athena grow in her exile was no better than a punch to the face for Medusa, which seemed to amuse the goddess.

“She will be happy to eat some tasty olives.” Eugenia replied calmly.

“I cherish your optimism.”

“With all of these fruits we should have a great meal today.” She changed the subject as she picked some of the garden’s freshly grown treasures.

“Then let us invite your snake.” She suggested.

“Good idea.”

“We may put our training to effect posthaste then.” She licked her olive juice covered lips.

Eugenia gulped nervously.

----------------------------------------

It then so happened that the three of them assembled around a fire and sat in a triangular formation. Each corner with a completely different mood to it.

“You took another gift from the gods without asking me first?” Medusa was turned towards Eugenia, completely ignoring the third person. She was spinning the wooden spike on which she had grilled her hare meat. Her expression was rigid.

“Lady Aphrodite just gave the garden some life energy. This was all already inside the soil.” The blind girl responded, busy with deboning another hare. Her face was shifting between several emotions.

“It was no trouble at all. These olives are to die for, do you not agree?” And Aphrodite was lying on her side with a ceaseless smile as she dropped another olive into her shapely mouth.

The atmosphere was as strained as expected, but peace yet seemed like an option.

“Medusa do you want more meat?” Eugenia held out the pink meat expectantly.

“Do not change the topic…”

“I put a lot of effort into this one.” The girl insisted.

“…fine.” Medusa sighed and took the meat into her hand. She then stabbed it onto the same spike as before. The meat was turning brown quickly and a wonderful smell spread through the camp.

“I’m sorry if the smell is too strong.” Eugenia apologized to Aphrodite who did not enjoy the taste of meat.

In response Medusa showed a malicious smirk and held the meat into wind so that the smell spread even quicker.

“My dear, I may not eat it, but the smell is quite alluring to me. I will take in my fill of the snake’s meal this way.” She waved it off gracefully.

“Hmph.” Medusa grunted in dissatisfaction and put the meat down.

“You aren’t eating Medusa.”

“Why are you in such a hurry now?” She raised a brow and then bit off the well-done meat. She chewed for a few moments and then swallowed quickly.

“…” Eugenia was awaiting something like a puppy.

“Yes?” Medusa looked down on her with confusion.

“How was it?”

“Agreeable.” She had no idea what was going on with this girl today.

“Only agreeable? I tried so hard. Maybe the younger ones would have more tender meat?” She muttered to herself and slapped her hands on her knees.

“?” The Gorgon could only look on questioningly.

“This plum would go well with some honey.” Aphrodite said as she sensually licked her fingers.

“If you conjure up bees as well I will petrify them on the spot.” Medusa threatened.

“Beekeeping is a tedious occupation and your little human works hard enough as is.” She replied matter of factly.

“I’m not doing that much!” Eugenia shook her head embarrassedly.

“Do not sell yourself short sweetie, I have not seen many a woman so dedicated to self-sufficiency. Any man would love to have a diligent wife that was even half as useful as you.”

“Please…”

“Ahaha, are you turning red?”

“Hm?” Medusa kept moving her eyes between the two. Their interactions had certainly changed from yesterday.

“You agree with me no doubt, snake. Your partner is a magnificent asset, yes?” The sharp eyes met with the cursed ones again.

“Why do you ask me?” She replied carefully.

“Who better to judge her hard work than the one who profits from it the most?”

“And that beneficiary is supposedly me?”

“You disagree?”

Medusa did not follow her scheme this time. What was Aphrodite’s ulterior motive in praising Eugenia so overtly? Could it have been honest affection? Truthful curiosity? It seemed impossible and yet…

“I have never asked for any boons from this relationship. Eugenia is free to use the island as she sees fit. Any offering she makes to me is her whim.” She purposely did not look at the girl while she spoke. “Everything that comes from this island is mine to begin with. She only returns to me what I already own.”

“Can you sew, little snake?”

“What?”

“Can you skin a hare so well that nearly no meat is lost? Can you nurture a garden so delicately that it blossoms even with lacking soil? Is it one of your cursed abilities to rebuild structures that can stand on their own and last through heavy weather?”

“Lady Aphrodite!” Eugenia pulled on her loose chiton to stop her from saying any more.

“I am in no need of such skills.” The Gorgon replied stubbornly.

“I knew you would answer me thusly.” She shrugged loosely and put a hand to Eugenia’s flushed cheek. “You are wasted on that beast.”

“Stop it.” This time Eugenia was not speaking meekly.

“A jest, of course.” Aphrodite said after grueling seconds. “You still see positive qualities in the snake.”

“Yes! There are a lot of wonderful things about Medusa.” The girl spoke nervously.

“Go on then. I have time.” She smirked and gave the human girl a nearly unnoticeable sign.

“Uhm… w-well. There is her voice.”

“My voice?” Medusa felt left out by their antics, but that answer did really pique her interest.

“A person’s voice reflects their soul. It is made up of all their aspects. The intonation reflects on their personality, the depth of each word their life’s burdens and the sound of their laughter is... their beauty.” Eugenia spoke hesitantly, but with deep emotion.

Aphrodite closed her eyes and seemed to listen well, expectantly.

“Then what does my voice tell your unnatural ears?” Medusa played along.

“You are harsh, you are burdened and you are… beautiful.” The girl almost whispered and turned her face away.

Medusa felt uneasy when hearing those words. As if her blood was rushing through her ears and the air circulation was forcefully stopped. She must have felt tense because of Aphrodite’s presence, but was she really this affected? It did not seem to make sense.

“Beautiful?” She asked blankly. There was that word again. Eugenia had said the same thing yesterday. Then what she spoke of was not the outer appearance but this supposed beauty of a person’s voice?

Laughable. How could mere laughter be beautiful? Even the goddess should have laughed at such childish fantasies, but she did not even chuckle this time. How could someone so obsessed with beauty not make a mockery of the girl’s words?

“I have never heard the snake’s cackling, yet I feel intrigued.”

Was that really her conclusion? Why was she playing along with Eugenia instead of insulting both of them again?

“Say, what does my laugh tell you about my beauty?”

Eugenia stayed silent for far longer than expected. Eventually she quietly responded.

“You haven’t shown me your true laugh yet.”

Aphrodite’s face twitched nearly imperceptibly and her eternal smile became far more strained.

“Ahahaha you are merely a child after all. There is still much you can learn about the world and about laughter.” She deflected haughtily and rubbed Eugenia’s head with one hand. “Be that as it may, you have quite the devotee here, little snake. It appears even you have appeal left to give.”

Medusa watched her intently and then leaned back, putting the grilled meat to her mouth and chowed down with a hidden satisfied smile.

“And Medusa is really p-pretty outside as well. She has great skin and er… her body is really curvy.” Eugenia seemed to have remembered something and broke the tension with some utterly unnatural sounding praise.

“What are you on about?” Medusa gave her a pitying look.

“If men could look at you without getting turned to stone they would definitely say you are appealing!!” She said with forced élan and balled her fists determinedly.

Medusa put her meat down and looked baffled.

“And that tail! Just let me rub my face against it a-all niiight!” She squealed with a beet red face.

“You set her up to this. Do not even deny it.” She pointed at the goddess who was pretending to be busy with her perfect nails.

“I cannot fathom where you got such a curious idea.” She chuckled.

“And your breasts are like really firm apples! The ones they grow south of Sparta!!”

“You can stop now.” She pressed the tip of her tail into Eugenia’s face to make the horrific praise stop.

----------------------------------------

“I failed.” Eugenia let her head hang in depression.

“You may have put it on a smidgen too thickly at the end.” The beautiful goddess comforted her beautifully by putting the girl’s head on her lap.

“I forgot most of what you told me. My head suddenly felt so empty.”

“Stage fright as it were is not too uncommon for those pursuing their love.”

“She must be so disgusted with me now.” She gave in to the despair and let her face sink into the thighs.

“I am confident that she is only decently irritated, no more. She will return from that cliff in due time.”

“It went all wrong. She didn’t even notice the way you arranged my chiton.” She muttered.

Their strategy to make Eugenia woo Medusa had failed in its infancy. The nervous girl had messed up on the script and the Gorgon had not paid attention to her far more seductive outfit. Even the goddess of love must have realized that it was hopeless now.

“Her eyes were always on you though.” Aphrodite spoke quietly as if in thought. “And that improvisation about the beauty of her voice seemed to be more effective than expected.”

“Huh?”

“Nevermind, dear. You should never give up before you attained your goal.”

“That’s pretty unreasonable.”

“You have no time to reconsider and doubt.”

“Time is all I have.” She whispered. On this small island where nothing could come or go other than fools and gods, there was only time to think and think until everything became certain and uncertain at once.

“Time is a fleeting thing for you mortals. Even I have only so little left.”

“Eh?”

“Until my dear Helios rides by to pick me up of course~” She said with a sultry voice.

Eugenia turned her face back against the supple legs and mulled it over.

“Do you love the great and fiery Helios?”

“I love all handsome men. They were gifted with such appreciable features for a reason.”

“But isn’t that just lust?”

“Oh?” Aphrodite made a small sound before stroking Eugenia’s long hair. “There is no difference to me.”

“Really? Can you not love someone without desiring their body?”

“There is the love parents feel for their children, Storge. There is the love you show your guests, Xenia. Yet all else are the feelings of Eros. You must learn quickly child, if your passion for her is true, that you will come to desire her. The same is true for the gods and any living thing that can feel love. Were I to share my love with a man, I would naturally do so through the union of the body. It is the purest expression of love you can give.”

“Can you not be lovers without lust?”

“What difference would there be from simple friendship?”

Eugenia had no response to that. Aphrodite gave her a pitying glance and then continued softly.

“Love has as many folds as these clothes on your body, dear child. It begins with a fiery passion that will engulf you whole.” She traced her fingers across the girl’s neck and went lower. She slowly caressed her chest and then slid down into her chiton.

“Mmgh!” Eugenia suppressed a surprised moan and struggled a little, but Aphrodite’s other hand held her down with ease.

“If you deny the flames they will consume your heart and eventually only leave smoldering ash. If you wish to form a true connection with the snake you have to learn to please her. There is no way around this lesson, so do not avert your ears.”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

The goddess’ long fingers moved with experienced motions. They trailed an often treaded path, some familiar ground. Aphrodite did not guide her hands, they moved all on their own, completely autonomous and free. Wherever they touched, Eugenia’s skin seemed to burn up.

The young women bit on her lower lip as she felt the heat bubble through her belly when the fingers spun around her navel.

“There are ways for a woman to pleasure another woman. Even more so than any man.” She whispered into her ear and licked it.

Eugenia shivered in shame and arousal.

“I can teach you what you need to know. This is the one way to make her all yours. If you surrender yourself to this feeling you will know how to make her surrender as well.” Her hot breath was prickling across the young woman’s neck and she gasped when the other hand went into her chiton as well to play with the unattended chest.

“Hngh… ah… stop…” She was afraid of this feeling. It was not something she ever wanted to give in to and if she did she felt that there was no turning back.

“If my hands cease now, will you be able to bear it?” Aphrodite asked in the most mesmerizing voice.

“I-“ Eugenia’s heated voice escaped her throat like a soft moan. Her answer was drowning inside her fading mind. The hand was now sliding down her lower abdomen, trailing left and right like a snake. Soon it would reach its destination-

“What are you doing?” Asked the cold voice of none other than the owner of this lonely isle.

“Your ghastly attitude has left this human stricken with grief, so I resolved to comfort her.” Aphrodite did not even miss a beat as her hands were already out of the clothes to give the snake woman a friendly greeting.

“Eugenia, are you all right?” Medusa looked down on the girl who was breathing heavily and covered in sweat. Her heartbeat was so loud that even at this distance it could still be heard.

“Med… usa?” She covered her face with both arms and was shaking a little.

“She is feeling splendid I assure you. Have you returned out of worry for her broken heart?”

“Keep your hands away from her. She does not wish to be held down by you.” Medusa said coldly. It was clear from her voice that she knew what was truly going on. Her nose was too good to miss the truth. Yet she said nothing more.

“I believed my lap to be quite fetching for those in need of rest, however if you prefer to let her lie on your tail, perhaps that can be arranged.” She smiled undaunted by the cold glare and raised Eugenia up. The girl was still shivering a little, clearly with a still heated mind, but also too ashamed to show her face or speak a word.

“Can you stand?” Medusa reached out her hand to the human girl and pulled her up.

“I’m sorry.” She said quietly and took a few deep breathes to staunch the flames in her chest.

“No need to apologize. I treated you ill for something you did not scheme up yourself.” She said in an empathetic tone before letting Eugenia down on her curled tail. The girl for some reason closed her legs tightly and fidgeted around.

“It is heartwarming to see you act tender with her now that you have found your scapegoat.” Aphrodite joked as she leaned on her side and completely reveled in her role as the immoral manipulator. “Although I have not forced her to do any of it.”

“Have you not meddled enough? Your ride is taking its time.”

“The sun is still too far. The heat you feel comes only from within.” She said with a meaningful smirk and then yawned at Medusa’s instantaneous glare. “Then again, snakes are rather cold blooded.”

While Medusa considered the many ways she could throw this frivolous woman off her island, Eugenia seemed to slowly cool down and recover. She wiped some drool from the corner of her mouth and adjusted her loose clothes. Somehow she had managed to push her horrible embarrassment off and just enjoy the silence on top of Medusa’s writhing tail. There was something quite relaxing to those undulating motions. Even if she knew that it was only in such chaos due to Medusa’s anger.

“Never forget that feeling, my dear.” Aphrodite said with a wink. Then she looked up to Medusa and switched gears. “Do you believe in fate?”

“What has brought this on?”

“Your tale very much resembles one of the poets’ legends, but they often are written only long after the events transpired. What was fated and what was mere coincidence, who can honestly tell?”

“Is that not what the Moirai are for?” Medusa spat out. She could not stand the gods, but the women spinning the destiny of all the world she could accept even less. Their only purpose was to ascertain that everything had a purpose and an end. Not even the mighty Zeus was exempt from their weaving.

“The Fates may stitch the fate into the world, but which causes which? Are the actions of man what inspires the strings or is it the reverse?” She cupped her face with both hands and tranquilly moved her legs in half circles.

“My actions are only my own. With true strength one can even bend fate.” Medusa said resolutely. But there was that ever so infinitesimal crack in her eyes. The smallest of gaps in her resolve.

Eugenia seemed to be moved by her splendid response and took no note of that crack. The Gorgon had told her something similar a long time ago and her answer had still not changed. This tenacity was one of a kind.

“’True strength’. If such a thing does exist I cannot fathom why a little snake would have it, but your answer is not unexpected. Then how about you my dear? Does your human heart also adhere to such true strength?”

“I believe that things are supposed to happen.” She replied with an honest expression. “My choices are already decided for me before I make them. I wish I could be as confident as Medusa.” She smiled wryly.

“Do not be foolish.” Medusa put her hands around her waist and held her closer as if to tell her that fate could not be stronger than those arms.

“But why does it matter?” She asked innocently.

“Pardon?” Even Aphrodite seemed shocked by such a question.

“Whether fate is decided from the day we are born or whether we shape it ourselves, what does it matter? In the end we will never know. We can’t ask the Moirai and we have to act the same way no matter what the strings say. Whether it is decided or I decided it, to me both feel the same.” She explained.

“Then you accept the illusion?”

“It is reality to me.” Eugenia said while holding onto the Gorgon’s arms.

“I hear your words, but they are enticingly exotic.” The goddess smiled. “You will not deny that destiny exists?”

“I am not sure that is for me to confirm or deny.” She scratched her head. “I did want to find out about my future once at least. There was this soothsayer in Athens who told everyone their fates.”

“A charlatan no doubt.” Medusa interjected.

“Weeell, he said he was related to the Pythia in Delphi. He said their entire family possessed the gift to converse with the gods and see the future.”

“…” Aphrodite and Medusa exchanged a single glance. They were of the same opinion for once.

“The priestesses in training always went out to the main city to buy supplies for the temple that the cart didn’t bring. I… tagged along once.” She swallowed some bad memories. Back then she had not made many good memories with the other girls. “They stopped at the soothsayer’s stand and he read their fortunes.”

“What type of fortune?”

“About their future love.”

Now Aphrodite seemed to be more interested, while simultaneously also more insulted.

“It was quite amazing. Almost all of them would leave the temple and marry aristocrats and rich merchant sons. The oldest of us will get married to a king in Macedonia in two years.”

“Human girls will believe anything if it caters to their hearts.” Medusa muttered.

“I didn’t want to get my fortune read at first, but they… forced me to take it as well. In all honesty I was very curious.” She admitted shyly. “He looked at the bones for a long time and then told me ‘You will have an arduous battle with love. To find the one will be a dangerous journey and your love will always be just out of reach.’ It was a very rude prediction.” She sighed.

“Maybe he was actually the real deal after all.” Medusa suddenly seemed convinced.

“How cruel!”

“You have convinced me that fate has many faces at least.” Aphrodite put one hand through her waving hair and exhaled femininely. “The one fate that binds all is not as bittersweet as happiness and sadness. It is a journey that all must take.”

Eugenia nodded. Everyone was trying to prepare themselves for that eventual departure. The ultimate fate: Death.

“They say even gods may die.” The beautiful goddess spoke in melancholy.

“…” Medusa seemed slightly unsettled.

“But beauty lies not in eternity! It exists in a passionate fire that rises above the mountains and dissipates in the skies. And though many of us shall be remembered forever and the stars reflect our stories, so will we still fade nonetheless.”

The two mortals before her had very different reactions to such an ode to ephemerality. It was rare to hear gods speak of an end. Medusa herself had spoken of a cycle and succession, but even thinking of a world without the Olympians was often considered blasphemy.

Why was Aphrodite speaking of such grim things? Medusa seemed to have an idea.

“May that day stay far away. For mortals however it could happen any day. That precious time you have to fret and worry over trivialities will run dry eventually. Say good snake, shall I go to the Moirai and ask them of your fate? The length of the yarn you have yet left to spin?” Her sharp eyes were sucking her in like a whirlpool.

“It matters not…” She turned silent. She was clinging to Eugenia with more force than intended, leaving white marks. She had realized what Aphrodite was truly aiming for.

“Aha, though if your lifespan is a yarn,” she pointed her finger at the Gorgon’s head and then let it sink lower “then this human girl’s could be no more than a single stran-“

“Silence!” She rose up and shouted at the intruder. Eugenia fell down her tail with a surprised yelp. “Leave already! You are not welcome here.” She spun around and slithered away red with anger.

“Medusa!” Eugenia called out to her, but was ignored. She wiped some sand from her hands and showed her sadness.

“’Tis no longer in question. Your dear snake is a coward.” Aphrodite declared.

“Don’t speak ill of her.” She replied weakly.

“She is right in a singular matter, though. I must leave soon, my ride is closing in. This exhilarating heat announces his entrance to my body.” She extended her hands to the sky where the sun had grown considerably already.

“Why did you say these things to her?” Eugenia asked with inner turmoil.

“It is as I told you, my dear. Time is of the essence and will not halt for you two. There is one thing that any woman fears. Do you know what it is?”

Eugenia clasped her hands together and let sand run through it helplessly.

“Loneliness.” She answered truthfully.

“The snake may be a monster, but she is still mortal. All mortal things are subjects to time and those who fall to time fear change. We gods crave variety and new challenges, but humans would prefer to live their short existence knowing their world and keeping it safe. You have become part of this world. You have forcefully clawed your way in, but for each decade that passes she will grow more attached and you will grow frailer… until you too crumble before her like the statues of men that you smashed across this island.”

Aphrodite touched her lowered head as if she was trying to pull her hair.

“No…” Eugenia felt a stinging in her head and chest when a single image flew past her mind.

Medusa stood on top of a hill with a grey face, fallen in eyes, emptiness singed into her cheeks.

Before her lay the stones.

A grave.

Loneliness. Emptiness. Deserted.

Hot tears fell to the heated sand below which greedily drank them up. Whose tears were they?

“I am hurting her.” She whispered with a cracked voice.

“You did this to her.” Aphrodite confirmed.

“She… is so alone…”

“Would it not have been better never to know this happiness if it only brings pain?”

“But I never wanted that! I just wanted to be with her… love her.”

“Love is selfish dear. You should have realized this by now.”

“No, there must be- There has to be something I can do!”

“You have to be decisive. Your time is short, so make it count. Give her more passion than she can ever drink and she shall be filled for the rest of her days.”

“Do I have enough to give?” Such an unending solitude could not be filled easily.

Aphrodite smiled widely, a mysterious spark in her deep eyes.

“There is a way.” She said alluringly. “A way that even your short spark will last beyond its extinction.”

“What is it?! Tell me, please!” She held on to the goddess' loose robes and begged her for knowledge.

“Progeny.”

It was one simple word.

But the implications were grand. So many opposing ideas bombarded the girls head at once that she seemed paralyzed.

Progeny, children, offspring, the legacy of life. Something to stay behind once this generation was already on their journey to the Underworld. That was her solution? That was salvation?

“But we can’t.” She muttered hollowly.

What was the goddess actually suggesting? That Eugenia found a man to lay with and bear children? So that her children would stay trapped on this island to watch over Medusa for her? Those children too would have to repeat that process and then they would die and leave Medusa behind again. A cycle of grief. The very idea made her sick.

If they were her children though, if Medusa was the one to give birth, they should be hybrids that could live as long as their mother. The thought crept into her mind almost uninvited, so foreign.

“I am your goddess child. The goddess that governs fertility itself! If it is your wish I can grant you the means to create this future with your own body.” She spoke solemnly as she still held Eugenia’s head.

“You mean you will…?” She softly touched her groin in fear.

“My son Hermaphroditus once loved a nymph so dearly they became one not just in body, but in spirit as well. Not many humans know this tale these days, but my son has not always been a being between man and woman. Now that he has given eternal proof to their love, the world reveres him as the one who combines both virtues in himself. A strong and fertile male genital is an easy gift to bestow, human.”

Her head was in pain already, but now it also seemed to be shaking from a deep seated disgust. She was not proud of her own body, but she still felt like doing something like that would tarnish it even more. If it was for Medusa could she change everything about herself?

Medusa was…

“It cannot work. Medusa’s body is not like mine. You said it yourself, her womb derides life.” She said something cruel to avoid her fears.

“Monsters are some of the most fertile beings in this world. Their bodies are made to breed unending spawn and spread their evil across the civilized lands. The Gorgon too can give birth. She derides this gift herself.” Aphrodite spoke with unexpected ire. “I can feel it inside her... The life she suppresses. The birth she denies.” Her fingers - for the fracture of a moment - dug into Eugenia’s head.

“Medusa was impregnated by Lord Poseidon.” Eugenia responded monotonously. Why had it taken her so long to remember that? This fact was something that brought Medusa great- “Aiiiee!” Her head seemed to almost burst from red-hot pain.

“Do you not wish for her to bear your child?” Aphrodite demanded an answer.

“I can’t… won’t be… afraid…” She spoke between bursts of stabbing pain.

“Then there is only one solution left.” Aphrodite leaned down so that her mouth reached the shaking girl’s ear.

Eugenia’s white eyes widened.

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Medusa furiously flung away the animal furs inside her lair. Her emotions would not subside. She went through the chests and finally found a small pouch that she had hidden away. Inside it was her trump card. If she just grabbed this now she could do something… she would surely regret.

With an exhausted sigh she let go of the pouch and dropped it back into the chest. Her body was so heavy all of a sudden, it made her wish to just curl up on the warm ground and sleep forever.

Was it not pathetic, the way she acted? Aphrodite knew her fears and had pinpointed them with malicious accuracy. It was not like her to give credit to the gods, but that woman had a far sharper mind than the frivolous strumpet she made herself out to be.

If she was so strong - possessed true strength - then why did she have to feel fear? Even if she could bend her own fate to her whims, there were things out of her grasp. This horrible emptiness she could tell was ahead and that she could not avoid no matter how much she bent. Everything depended on her. When… just when had the mighty Gorgon become dependent on a simple human girl?!

She wished to know more about herself, to understand what this glimpse of the old Medusa could still show her in this far away future where only the Gorgon persisted, but the price may have been too tall. That was perhaps what hurt the most. A heart of stone could receive cracks when it was exposed to heat and cold too many times.

The heat of joy.

The chill of loss.

It could wear down the sturdiest of mountains with time.

And yet. And yet, and yet, and yet. There was always more, always a second guess and an excuse. Only a coward would stand at the crossroad and not choose a path.

She closed her fist and tore out some fur from the animal skins. Her face became still and stable. She could continue to be herself for as long as she needed. That was the only path.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

She sensed the rhythmic steps of someone going down the stairs to her lair. From the lightness of each step she could garner that it was a woman or a child. There were only two people on this island other than herself. Would that woman dare come down here? Anything was possible with her, but she doubted it. Eugenia would have stopped her.

She rose up and waited expectantly. Eventually that chestnut hair poked around the corner and joined her in the dark room. Some of the fluorescent light from the hole in the cave wall streamed across the girl’s face and illuminated her in a strange shade.

“Did you leave the intruder behind? Unsupervised?” Medusa asked roughly.

“Lady Aphrodite has left. She is with her beloved now.” Eugenia replied.

Medusa did note an increase in heat from above. Then it must have been Helios riding over the island. That was a grand relief indeed, no more obnoxious conversations with that woman for now. Perhaps the relaxation had been too apparent on her body, as Eugenia seemed to have noticed and approached her more openly.

“I showed you a pathetic sight.” Medusa admitted with some reservation.

“I don’t mind.”

“Why, are you not too gracious today? I did not ask you for absolution.” Medusa’s mouth twitched annoyedly.

“You always act so distant. It didn’t surprise me you would run away again.”

“Excuse me?” Now she really felt insulted and leaned forward indignantly.

The next moment Eugenia hugged her.

“Medusa, you don’t have to act tough. You don’t have to be strong.”

“What has gotten into you now?” She could have easily broken out of her weak embrace, but she was too stunned to react right away.

“I won’t be with you forever. That is the truth.” She said with soft voice. “But you don’t have to be alone.”

Medusa became quiet and mustered her small face. She spoke with such genuine emotion that it was hard to act her usual abrasive self. This embrace was not a show of affection, it was the grip of a hand that held on to a rope hanging from a cliff. This overwhelming desperation was unsettling.

“You do not need to concern yourself with the distant future.” She said quietly.

“I must!” Eugenia retorted with shocking force. “You will stand on that hill… alone… alone… always alone.” She seemed almost frantic. Her face was in a deep twisted trance.

“You think my heart so frail?” The Gorgon was too strong to be lonely.

But Medusa was not. She wanted to stay still and unresponsive, but her hand wrapped around the girl and held her tight. It was like two wills were battling inside her soul.

“If I am gone, there will be something of me left. All you need to do is…” She inhaled. For a moment she seemed to be fighting herself, but then gave in. “…bear children.”

“…what…” Medusa’s face turned rigid as stone.

“Medusa, I am a woman, so I cannot give you that happiness. I can’t leave behind my blood to coat you from isolation. But as long as I live I can impart things to your children. We will raise them together. We will love them together. That Storge is a love I can give you, even if you will forever spurn my Eros!” Her words were heated and her white eyes darted around, as if following an invisible motion.

“How dare you?” Medusa’s icy voice reverberated inside the lair.

“W-wait, please don’t get angry! I know that you… h-h-haaaate… You HATE the gods.” Her mouth twitched in pain, so she bit her lip until it began to bleed. “But these children are innocent! We can raise them to be better! Hear me out. They have divine blood, so they will live long lives. Longer than anything I can ever imagine. So haaah… haaaah… Medusa must give birth.” She held her head as if it was splitting open from a blade.

“This farce has gone on long enough.” Medusa said with death in her eyes. She pried Eugenia’s arms away and pushed her onto a pile of furs.

“WAIT! You can’t reject this too! You will be forever alone- th-the hill will be spilled away by the raging seas and you will still stand in its remains-“

“Quiet.” Medusa had found the pouch and then attached it to the cord wrapped around her waist.

Eugenia stretched her hand forward with tears in her eyes. It was as if she was left behind. Left to perish alone.

Yet Medusa knew, this fear was entirely focused on her. It was the sinister desire behind Eugenia’s fear that had to perish.

“Why do you hate me?!” Eugenia shouted after her.

Medusa’s back was turned to her, but she actually stopped in her tracks this time.

She turned back and took human steps towards the quivering girl.

“I will never hate you.” She assured her with a smile. “But why is it that you are crying? Why are you in so much pain? You are the only one who seems to hate herself.”

Eugenia’s blind eyes were shaking and the hot salty flow would not stop. She seemed to be torn apart inside. But one side was winning over the other soon.

“Why…? Why would I say something so cruel?” She asked forlornly. “To you of all people… to make you bear the children of those who hurt you the most…?” She collapsed as Medusa had softly knocked her out.

“Because you are too kind.” The Gorgon replied and returned her face to pure anger as she left the lair.

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Outside the sun shone so brightly that everything seemed to be covered in a veneer of white.

The sun chariot was close, but it had not arrived yet. Standing in this burning light was the one who had caused this cold wrath on the Gorgon’s face.

“Finished already?” Aphrodite asked ironically.

“As I thought, you never left.” Medusa said with a dark glare.

“A tiny lie for that adorable fool.” She said without remorse and turned towards Medusa.

“Then see with your own eyes what you have sown.” Medusa’s eyes met the shining pair of the goddess.

But this time it was different.

The silvery-purple glow from the cursed eyes was more intense than ever before. They were opened to the absolute limit and the snake like pupils in full effect. A dark wave penetrated the eternal light around them and took hold of Aphrodite.

First the goddess of love was unperturbed, but then she realized that her limbs would not move. She could only slightly move her head. It seemed like her lips and eyes were intentionally left unaffected for some reason.

“You vile beast.” She spoke with horrified disdain. “Have you lost your mind? You will embrace the curse to such an extent?”

“You arrogant gods have grown complacent with your immunity to my eyes. I was never unable to affect you, it was only the petrification that could not reach you.” Medusa was smiling. It was not a happy smile or an evil smile, it was a smile of pure rage.

“I see, so this is your futile rebellion.” Aphrodite managed to quickly regain her composure and smiled back disparagingly. “This little trick shall not last long. Utterly pointless, would you not agree?”

“If keeping you in place was my only goal it would be an empty resistance, I agree.” She stepped forward in the same manner one might have taken a leisurely walk across the road.

“What is it you seek then?”

“Undo the charm you have put on Eugenia.” Medusa said with her claw at Aphrodite’s throat.

“Oh? Hahaha~!” She laughed in twisted amusement. “You believe I did something to her?”

“I know so.” Medusa was slowly walking in a circle around the goddess while keeping her stuck in place. Her long sharp claw was playfully going around the woman’s throat and face.

“Fine, I will admit that I have played a little with the child. It is not as you believe however.”

“Undo it.”

“You do not wish to know what I did first?” She asked sardonically.

“You will tell me that too. All in due time. Now undo it.” She cut the skin on Aphrodite’s cheek and drew a single drop of blood. She could not be meddled with anymore.

“You think yourself in control, little snake.” Aphrodite chuckled darkly. “But you will never put a mark on me. No matter how many times you tear apart this flesh and bone.”

It was the height of foolishness to threaten a goddess. This woman would not give up her pride to some temporary pain. No, she was far too stubborn for that.

Medusa knew that of course.

“I would have loved to crush your skull, tear each tooth from your bloody smile and stuff your eyeballs up your birth canal, so they may see what a thousand mortal men have already laid waste to.” She still smiled with pure angry joy. She was right behind Aphrodite and held her throat in place while drawing something from her pouch.

“!” Aphrodite stiffened up even further, if that was even possible. From the corner of her eyes she could see something black slowly come into vision.

“You must sense it already. This little dagger was brought here by a rather bothersome man who was far cleverer than you. It brings my blood to a boil to remember him, but now I can even feel a certain gratitude for his overly excessive backup plans.” She playfully moved the dagger left and right in front of her face, forcing the goddess eyes to follow it.

“Such a vile thing.” She was genuinely disgusted. Medusa had never seen such a horrified expression on her face.

It was exhilarating.

“I believe it was called an anti-divine dagger. This metal could have killed even me under the right circumstances. We both know that such a thing could not kill you of course.” She said casually, before putting it right to Aphrodite’s face. “But it will leave a mark.”

“How dare you-“

“There will be none of that.” Medusa tightened her hand around her throat to stop her from talking back. “I know you goddess of ‘love’. You are narcissistic, obsessed with your own beauty. Your pride is greater than Mount Olympus and you would never forgive anyone who insulted your visage. No wound I could deal you would last even a moment, but what of a cut by this dagger? What of a scar that resists divinity? That will last more than a moment. That will be an ignominy you could not stand. I would have left a mark on your impeccable face and even if the world never found out, you will always live with that knowledge. You said it yourself… your lifespan is far greater than mine. I will die eventually, but you shall live on knowing that your own hubris has given you a ‘mark’.”

“Despicable, arrogant and contemptible snake. You will pay for this.” It was a promise.

“You forced my hand. You did this. Do you know why?” She moved around her so that their eyes were right in front of each other. “You hurt my Eugenia.”

Aphrodite stayed silent for a long time as the heat of the fiery sun came closer. The dagger was still right between her eyes.

“Undo. Your. Spell.”

“As you wish, Gorgon.” She almost spat out as she said it and weakly snapped her fingers. “It is done.”

“Very well.” She picked Aphrodite up and threw her forward.

The paralyses was undone mid-motion and Aphrodite daintily landed on her feet. She rubbed her reddened throat and breathed in a few times, feeling up her perfect face. Medusa had not given her a single wound aside from the initial claw cut on the cheek which had already regenerated to nothingness.

“If you do anything now we can repeat this. I wonder which will falter first? My curse or your hatred?”

“You overestimate yourself monster.” Aphrodite adjusted her hair and dissolved all beads of cold sweat at the same time. “You are not worth my true ire.”

“I was unsure of why you would come here. The entirety of your stay I had not been able to figure it out. What you did to Eugenia finally gave me the decisive clue.” She put a hand on her hip and threw the dagger into the scorching sand. “You manipulated us so that I would give birth to Poseidon’s children.”

“Haha.” The goddess also put one hand on her own hip, mirroring the Gorgon. “No matter how much you learn you still understand nothing. It is true that I came here with that intention as well. It is not right for you to drag those children into Tartaros with you. They have done no wrong.” The goddess spoke with a hint of regret.

It was uncharacteristic at first glance, but in truth Aphrodite was first and foremost the goddess of fertility. The Gorgon’s rebellion against her rapist was leaving divine children unborn for eternity.

Medusa felt no remorse even now.

“You will never believe what I am about to say, but you hardly have a reason to stop me.” She put a hand through her long flowing chestnut hair and looked up to the incoming chariot.

“Speak your sweet lies then.” She snorted.

“I do feel pity for your beloved human. She is far too earnest for this horrible place. Still I encouraged her, because that is indeed the most delectable love of all.”

“Which is?”

“Tragic love.” Aphrodite said with a gloating grin.

Medusa lost her even expression for a second and then squinted her eyes suspect.

“As I promised I will tell you what I did to the child.” She raised a finger to the side and winked. “I gave her only one thing. The thing she was lacking the most: Courage.”

“What-?”

“It is not a lie. I expanded her courage to the limit of what her frail mind could bear. Everything you experienced down there… was the true Eugenia.” She said amusedly.

“Do not use her name.” She growled in response.

At the border of the storm barrier the four horses galloped into view. Helios stoic face was approaching quickly.

“You did not even understand that fact, did you? I will enjoy this tale of tragic love dearly, I assure you. Your time is running dry, Gorgon.”

Time was running dry. She kept saying it. Was it not just a way to torment them? Was it perhaps more than just a manipulative phrase to break Eugenia’s psyche?

“I believe I told you when I first arrived. My dear Hermes was worried for you two and he had good reason to. I will give you this warning in his place.”

The hot air around them was standing still for just a moment. Medusa tensed up preemptively.

“Perseus is coming.”

And that was all she said.

With a surprisingly strong gust Aphrodite’s feather light body was thrown into the air and she was caught by the strong bulky arm of the divine man of the sun. Helios put her on the back of his chariot and shouted at his horses to pick up speed to make up for the detour.

Medusa was left behind in the cooling haze.

Her mouth moved on its own.

“Who?”

The goddess of fertility’s final words would weigh heavily on the Gorgon’s soul for a long time. As she stared after the shrinking sun, somewhere else a young man looked up to a new dawn.