First I have to explain something about my hometown. I said that I hailed from Lamia, but the truth is that I was not born in the city itself. My parents lived in a small village north of Lamia, called Dankana. It was named after the large pattern on the mountainside which many believed to have been carved into it by a giant beast.

My father was a craftsman who was responsible for almost every new building and piece of furniture in Dankana. He was popular with everyone and extremely kind. What I remember most about him is the way his scruffy beard tickled my cheeks when he kissed me.

Thanks to his hard work the old temple of Athena had been rebuild after nearly fifty years of decay. That’s where he met my mother, who was a freshly assigned priestess. I don’t know much about how they lived their lives before I was born, but they were very devout and praised as role models for the community.

Yes, everyone loved them, especially me.

I was born blind as you know, but I was not always blessed. I don’t remember what it was like before Lady Athena came to me in my dreams and granted me her favor. The moment when her spirit touched mine, I shall never forget. Her wisdom and enormity flowed into me and then I woke up, able to hear even the lowest of sounds. It should have been terrifying for a toddler like me, but I only remember happiness when I heard the distant chirping of birds as if they were right there with me.

It was a miracle and my parents knew that I had been blessed right away. Mother had prayed for the great and wise Athena’s favor many times and for her undying devotion, she was rewarded. I was rewarded. Father was so proud and overjoyed that he told everyone in the village about it and kept praising the gods from dusk till dawn. The other villagers seemed happy for us.

Thanks to my blessing I was quickly able to do so much more than before. The darkness that I knew was not so oppressive anymore. I learned soon just how incredible my gift was. For a blind girl to be able to learn like any other child, to go fishing with father and to climb trees without harm, these were priceless experiences I could have never had without Lady Athena’s blessing, I am certain of it.

The gods are sympathetic to us, the clueless creatures below them. Someone who had not done anything for them in her life was treated like a chosen one. That was when I decided to become a priestess just as mother before me, to repay them with all my heart. Mother was happy to teach me of course, but I was no more than a child of six summers, so she did not wish to rush things. I was childish as could be and tried to imitate her during prayer and her duties all the same.

Mother was always a good singer; I think that’s what I remember most about her. She sang for us on rainy days cooped up in the temple or when I couldn’t sleep in the hottest summer nights. The song that meant most to me was the ‘Praise to Athena’, a hymn so light, yet heartfelt that it often made the villagers cry. I can still hear it in my head even now…

I am getting sidetracked, my apologies.

My life changed a second time towards the end of my sixth summer. One night I had a strange dream, similar to the one where I was blessed. An owl with grey piercing eyes showed itself to me and flapped its wings. The swirls of air took the shape of pikes and arrows. They tore into the village and laid it to waste!

I awoke in a cold sweat and screamed for my mother. I never had a dream in which I could ‘see’ before. Colors, images, this sense that I did not know had suddenly been unleashed on my pure untouched mind, utterly overstraining it.

My parents came to comfort me, but they also knew what this ‘vision’ could mean. It was a warning from Lady Athena. Rather than descend on us, she warned me, specifically, of impending danger. Mother immediately performed rituals to converse with our goddess, but she only got weak, distant replies. I did not understand much of what was happening, but father convened with the village elder and the men became restless in the following days.

I was not allowed to play with the other kids anymore and had to stay inside the temple. Back then I was angry and cried to be freed, but now I understand that I was being protected.

An omen of death had been given to Dankana and it often happens that the messenger of bad omens was linked to the dark future itself. The villagers might have seen me as a threat, although I do not believe they really would have. They were all good people after all.

In the following weeks the weather got worse and worse. It seemed that the dark clouds from the east would never stop. The fields were drowning in the rain and the river was wilder than ever before. Something was on its way.

Then one morning, a single ray of light penetrated the clouds and paved the way for a white owl which swiftly flew into our temple. Mother dropped her candles; I remember the loud clanging of the bronze handle. The owl perched itself on top of my shoulder and cleaned its feathers. Mother called for father and they tried to lure the owl away from me, but to no avail.

It was very calm, unlike any bird I had heard before. After some time it finally flapped off my shoulder and unto the ground where it picked up a wooden stick with its beak. Thereafter it tapped the stick against the windowsill three times and then dropped a rotten acorn in front of us. As it flew outside, the sun was drowned out by more clouds and we were left alone.

Mother determined that whatever calamity was nearing would arrive in three days. The acorn represented the day of thanks for the harvest were the swine were fed with baskets of such acorns. Father gathered the village men and instructed them to barricade the entrance and exits of the village. It was too late to ask for Lamia’s support and they ill had the resources to grant it in the first place. I learned many years later that they were in conflict with a neighboring city and thus on lockdown themselves.

That night we prayed fervently that Lady Athena would be with us and impart her wisdom to the village. She had already warned us of the calamity, but we still greedily asked for more.

On the morning of the third day everything still seemed fine. The rain had even stopped for a time. Uncomfortable as I was cooped up in the temple, I did the unthinkable and escaped through the window. I just wanted to feel the sun again and move through the fresh air. The villagers noticed me, but kept their distance. Even the other children didn’t want to play.

I settled down near one of the houses of our neighbors and jumped through a large puddle. The splashes of cold were funny to me and I all but forgot about the impending danger already. Until I heard the voice of my father only a small distance away, that is. I quickly hid behind a fence near the group. It was a mindless reaction driven by my guilt for escaping our home no doubt.

“Today’s the day. Gettin’ a bit antsy here.” The old man from the mill said.

“Keep calm. Lady Athena is with us, you know that.” My father put a hand on the old man’s shoulder and nodded encouragingly.

“Bad news!” With a shout someone came running into the village and rushed towards my father and the miller. They stiffened up as he stopped in front of them and leaned on his knees from exhaustion. “They… they’re… coming soon- Must- It’s-“ He stumbled over his own words until father pulled him up and held his shoulders steady.

“Slow down Mar. You have to breathe.” His deep voice was always soothing and it did help Mar to focus.

“Whatsa matter, boy?” The miller acted calmer than he was. I could hear his increased heartbeat even from my position behind the fence.

“I was hunting for some small game down in the forest, next to the brook, you know?” He moved his hands around as if to show the path he had taken. “Was following some animal tracks, but then I found imprints of sandals.” He anxiously swallowed his spit.

“How many?” Father asked seriously.

“Can’t be sure! At least fifty, but could’ve been around a hundred, sir.” His body was still shivering in the afternoon breeze, but it was not because of the cold.

Father and the miller stayed quiet for a while, but they seemed to have an idea what this meant. Mar, the hunter, was anxiously looking back and forth between them, clearly out of his field.

“Which way did those tracks lead?” Father’s voice was low.

“Towards the old mountain. Who are these people? Why would they go up there?”

“Hrm, did ya hear of the war, boy?” Old miller asked while stroking his short beard.

“Between Lamia and that faraway city? I only heard some merchants talk about it during their spring visit.”

“It’s not looking good for Lamia’s enemy.” Father explained with crossed arms. “They lost a big battle in the plains and their siege was broken last week.”

“Isn’t that good news, sir?” The young hunter was confused.

“I would agree, if it wasn’t for the deserters.” He clicked his tongue. “Slave infantry. They either fight the fiercest or are the first to flee the battlefield.”

“You mean slave deserters are marching through the forest, towards the old Scar Mountain?” Mar tried to keep up.

“Lamia, with the help of her allies, is hounding the scattered army across the plains to the west, but if these men deserted early on they could have escaped north. The mountain is a good place to hunker down and get a good view over the area. If they want to wait it out until all stragglers are caught or killed, then that would be the best place for them.”

“Except…” The miller muttered dryly.

“What?”

“If they see Dankana from up there and decide that they don’t want to stay on the cold windy mountain top.” Father insinuated the rest with a grave voice. “This is the disaster we were warned of.”

“They will try to take over the village?!” Now Mar held his head in fear.

“Deserters are no better than bandits. They will take what they want and destroy what they don’t.” Father growled. I had never heard him so angry before.

“Gods have mercy.” The old miller lowered his head.

“A hundred men! That’s more than our entire village combined.” Mar lamented.

There were eight families in our small village, none boasting more than perhaps seven family members. I remember every single one of them. Of course the amount of able men that could defend us was much lower. Back then I did not understand why everyone was acting so scared. It made me feel sad to hear father this downtrodden, for he was an unshakable rock in the relentless sea to my young mind.

“Not all is lost.” Then came the strong voice of a fourth man. I recognized him right away as the village elder. We called him ‘elder’, but in truth he was younger than father. The old village elder was his father, who was sickly in bed since last spring. He had taken over his duties for the time being. “Good work Mar. I knew sending you out to hunt during the lockdown was a good idea.”

“Thanks brother- I mean chief.” Mar corrected himself hastily. The temporary chief smiled at his little brother’s turned down gaze.

“What do you have up your sleeve?” My father asked with suspicion.

“You know this village better than anyone, you built most of it after all.” Chief replied with respect.

“Dankana already stood before I arrived and it will stay around after I’m gone.” Father said curtly and then impatiently added. “What is your plan?”

“You said they are deserters, slaves forced into service.” He put up a fist. “They are cowards who fled from battle before. If they believe they will take too many losses they will avoid us.”

“That’s too-“

“Hear me out.” The chief stopped father. “We already barricaded the entrances, but we can do more. If we put up guards and patrols around the village, equipped with weapons, they will surely think twice of raiding us. We have the advantage here, because we already know what we are dealing with.”

“Those are equipped soldiers! They have swords, spears and slings. Even some cheap armor is better than none. If they decide to risk it out of desperation, we will have a bloody battle in front of us.” Father said with strong conviction.

“Then what would you do instead, hm? Hand them our homes without a fight? Let them eat our food and take our women?” Chief glared father down.

“We should evacuate.” He said.

“Where to? Lamia? They won’t let anybody into their city until this conflict is resolved. If we leave our home behind these bastards will take it over and destroy all we worked so hard to build.”

“Chief’s got a point.” The old miller took his side with a long sigh.

Father was furious, but he did not argue further. Nobody wants to leave their homes behind. There was not one person in this village who would want to take that chance if they could resolve this differently. If only father had been more adamant about it back then.

“Tell everyone to round up all axes, swords and bows they own. We are going to prepare for the night and patrol the barricades. That show of strength should make those deserters think twice.” Chief ordered Mar and the old miller to inform the rest of the village. Then he turned to father. “I trust you to look after your wife and daughter. We need Athena’s support more than ever tonight.”

“You can’t expect my child to get involved in this.” He refused him right away.

“She is not a mere child. Blessed people are not like us.” He didn’t wait to hear his complaints and moved back to the elder’s house.

Confused by their serious words I backed away behind the fence, but the splashing noises of my feet in the puddles made father suspicious. He looked over and must have spotted my white clothes, because he rushed to my side and embraced me suddenly.

“Eugenia, my little Cassiepeia, what are you doing outside?” He was not angry, but rather worried. He always called me his ‘Cassiepeia’ after the famous princess of a distant land who was renowned for her beauty and grace. Mother never liked it when he did that, though.

“It was lonely inside.” I replied, very ashamed of being caught. I did not fathom how serious the situation was.

“I am so sorry, honey. It will only be a little longer. You should stay with your mother and practice your prayers.” His chest was so warm and strong that I stopped feeling any dread and anxiety right away.

“I will.”

“That’s my girl. I will be back later, so you can show me how much you improved your singing.” His words were light, but his arms heavy.

I smiled at him, because I loved singing just as much as mother did. Usually father did not stay around to listen to me, though.

The village was like a wasps’ nest that had been poked with a stick, people buzzing about, not even paying attention to me on my way to the temple. Even when I went back inside and was scolded by mother, I could still hear them shouting outside. Things calmed down near the day’s end, when the village was covered by the blanket of night.

At first it was eerily quiet. I sat next to mother near the altar and prayed silently. My thoughts wandered to father who had still not returned. Just as my heart grew restless the storm returned. Heavy rain pushed against the roads and houses. It got colder rapidly. And there was the distant noise of thunder in the air.

This was the first time since the bad weather had begun that we had lightning strike around the mountain. Back then I did not believe that this noise came from Zeus wrath as he threw lightning bolts at his enemies. Surely the father of Olympus could not be fighting all the time. It was loud, but not unbearable inside the confines of the temple. The echo was uncomfortable however.

“Eugenia, you must focus on your heart.” Mother whispered and put an arm around my back to draw me in. She knew of my sensitive ears and was always ready to comfort me during such loud weather.

“Yes mother.” I focused on the accelerated heartbeat in my chest, but it was soon joined by another. Mother too was anxious, I could hear it in her chest. “When will father come home?”

“He will be back soon, dear.”

And so we waited. The night stretched forward, marching to the drum of rain. The warmth of the candles started to fade and mother got up to relight them, but as she left I sank into the dream world.

Once again I was met with a strange vision. This time I could hear Lady Athena’s voice.

Tune your ears. She said.

I jumped up from the blanket that had been put over me and sucked in the air. The great and wise goddess had spoken to me. She wanted me to use my gift!

Right away I told mother, but she was lost in thought. What could this cryptic message mean? To strain my ears to listen for something, that much was clear, but what was it that only my ears could perceive?

Without direction I simply perked my ears and picked up the sounds around me. The low rustling of mother’s clothes as she shifted her body, the low squeaking of mice in the cellar, the drumming of rain against the temple steps, those were the only things I could hear.

There had to be something else. The grey eyes told me to listen.

In a sort of trance I rose to my tiny feet and walked to the wooden door. Mother was concerned and held me back. She said I cannot leave. All she wanted was for me to be safe.

But I knew there was a purpose to her words! I could not shake this feeling off. So I slipped out of her arms and opened the door. It was cold and windy outside, the creaking of tree branches sounded like the steps of beasts. The rain hit my face with force, but I barely felt the cold. I had to move, had to listen to the world around me.

My ears picked up more and more. The noises swirled like a typhoon of voices and unsettling melodies. Steps. Hushed whispering. Distant coughing. The wild stream outside the village. They kept piling on and on…

My head started to spin and I felt a horrible pain assail it. Indeed, using my gift made me feel nauseous. It hurt… it hurt so much…

I went unto my knees in the mud and just held my head. I could not stop listening, but the noise was crushing my mind, the very essence of my being!

“Eugenia, stop!” Mother had run after me and was pulling me up. She was crying when she saw my bleeding nose and pain filled face. Her goodness overpowered her reason and even her belief in Lady Athena and so she dragged me back into the temple.

I should have resisted. I should have been stronger. I should have…

But I wasn’t. And so disaster struck.

At the edge of midnight we heard screaming, the clanging of metal and the sound of extinguished voices. The horrible storm of chaos had swept into the village and consumed it whole.

Mother clung to me when loud knocking hit the temple doors. They would not hold under great pressure of several men’s muscle strength. Unable to do anything we just awaited our destiny.

“Open up! It’s me! Hurry!” That voice was all too familiar. It belonged to father!

Mother rushed to the door and unlocked it from inside. The next moment father slipped in and smashed the door shut. He put his hand on mother’s arm and locked the entrance again. His breathing was ragged.

“Dear, you are hurt!” Mother gasped and put a hand to his cheek and chest.

“It looks worse than it is.” He replied reassuringly and pushed her hands away. “Flesh wounds.” Just as he said that he sank down the wall.

“What… what is happening? Please dear…!” Mother was swallowing her tears as best as she could.

“They found another entrance… we overlooked. Nobody stood guard near the mill, because we didn’t think they would cross the river in this forsaken weather.” He pressed something on his chest and then forced himself to get up.

Mother bit her lip and took out some rags to wipe father’s wounds.

“They got the chief and his family. Stabbed the patrol at the northern entrance in the back. Can’t believe that Mar’s-“ He stopped his words when he noticed that I was standing at the door frame. “Kynthia, you have to take Eugenia and flee.” He was saying it in a voice that allowed no objections.

“Where would we go? There is nothing out there. This is our home, dear.” She said with more countenance than she showed before. “And even if there was such a miraculous escape route, what of you?”

“Me and the remaining men retreated to organize the escape, but we don’t have any time. We’ll be holding them off as long as we can-“

“You are going to run into your doom! I will not allow it! We must surrender and appease them!”

“Kynthia, please… We have already lost. These slaves, they are no better than savages. I have seen the fire in their eyes. Lost and bereft of all reason. There is no negotiating, no compromise. They have come to take everything and what they can’t have they will lay to waste.” His voice was so grave that I felt my heart freeze.

Mother was brave and stubborn, but so was father. And yet they both were out of courage. They had all but given up, yet there was one thing that prevented them from giving in to despair.

“Eugenia. We can’t let them get to Eugenia.” Father said and balled his fists. “There is no other way. I have to go back and stop them.”

Mother pressed her head against his chest and sighed mournfully.

“My little Cassiepeia.” Father pulled me into a hug, so he could embrace both of us. “Your father has a job to do. Can you take care of your mother for me, while I am gone?”

“Where are you going?” I asked anxiously. “When will your return?”

He swallowed.

“I may not return… right away this time.” He said with a stilted voice. “But you know, this temple, it’s our home. I put every brick and every stone in it exactly where it is now. This temple is a part of me.” His rough hand was caressing my cheek. “So even if the wait is long, I will always be with you as long as you stay here. Do you understand?”

I nodded slowly.

“Now promise me that you will watch over your mother.”

“I will, father. I promise!” I clutched to his side without knowing why.

“Know that the goddess watches over you.” Mother kissed father deeply with tears streaming down her face.

“You two mean more to me than anything in this world, even the gods. Never forget that.”

And with those words he got up, ruffled my head one last time and walked out the door. On his way out he picked up an old sword that was hanging from the wall. The sound of it cutting air was the last thing I remember of my father’s exit.

He never returned.

“Your village was attacked by bandits and yet you survived?” Medusa wondered as she picked up large pieces of rubble in front of the Greenhouse. The collapsed ceiling had blocked the entrance completely, so the Gorgon decided to clean up with her incredible physical strength.

“Back then I wished that I didn’t.” Eugenia said with a frown as she bandaged her scraped up hands.

“Your village men, they did not win, did they?”

“It was impossible. The deserters had the tactical advantage and outnumbered us three to one.” The girl held her shoulders and lowered her head. “The storm raged on, but I couldn’t stop hearing the screams.”

Medusa stopped her noisy work and stared at the clearest skies she had seen in a long time. Memories could be haunting and sometimes knowledge was worse than any curse.

“They gathered the survivors in the village square…” Eugenia’s mouth was shaking. Every word pressed out was an unbearable effort.

“No more. I understand.” She stopped the human girl with a motion of her hand and put down a large piece of rubble. “A cornered dog will bite its master, but a cornered human will tear down the very world with them if they are given the opportunity.” She could now see what had caused the girl’s trauma and fear of thunder. It was far worse than she had thought. A night that was soaked in blood and regrets.

Eugenia nodded and then took a deep breath. “In the end there were thirty deserters left. And of the village… only six women and eight children, including my mother and me.”

“They let you live? To do their dirty work I presume?”

“At first.” She nodded.

Medusa had to scold herself for feeling pity. She had agreed to listen to the girl’s story, but it was not out of charity or sympathy. She merely wished to know how this priestess, this incomprehensible person next to her, had come into existence. Her heavy heart could not have been more than an illusion, a trick of the mind.

“If you wish to stop, I shall not look down upon your for it.” She said despite herself.

Eugenia folded her bandaged hands and seemed to contemplate that option, but then she shook her head.

“I decided that I need to be open with you.” Her reasons she kept to herself however.

“Suit yourself.” The Gorgon shrugged. “What happened next?”

“They occupied our village, our home.”

Eugenia gathered her courage to continue her tale, lost in her memories as the Gorgon absentmindedly cleared the rubble, lost in her own heart.