Page 9 of Meduso
“Okay. Now stand on the ledge,” my mother instructed.
I stood, watching the shift in the color of the water that my mother had formed.
“Wait. Where exactly in the world will I be visiting?” I asked.
She simply smiled at me. “Your mind will carry you there, Meduso. Just close your eyes and picture where you want to go. The rest will be in the hands of the Fates.”
I did as my mother advised. My lids were firmly shut and I slowly approached the very edge of the cliff before jumping into the pewter gray pool below. The only vivid image I had in my mind was the large fish in the net, in the shallow waters.
Sure enough, I opened my eyes, and there I was, swimming towards a huge fish, trapped in a net. I swam over to it and released the creature from captivity. I became tangled within the net, but noticed that it was now moving, pulling me to the surface. As I emerged from the water, I saw a figure holding the base of the net in his hand, dragging me up with it.
I reached for the end of the rather large boulder nearby to prop myself up. In one fell sweep, the figure reached under my armpit and lifted me up. I was now face to face with the man, or rather, boy. I gazed into his hazel-green eyes, astonished. He looked so similar to me, at least based on his limbs, skin color, and other broad physical features. He stood slightly taller than me, and parts of his body were tighter, with more girth to them than my own. Specifically, I was able to witness the thickness of the muscles in his arms and legs. They were of much greater proportion than my own.
“What were you doing down there!?” the boy asked.
“Helping save that fish that was caught.”
“You released that fish!? That was my next meal!” he irately stated.
“Well, I’m sorry. You’ll have to find something else to eat,” I retorted.
“I guess so. Are you from around here?”
“No. My family and I live in the ocean,” I explained.
“Oh! Are you a god?”
“No. I’m a mortal. A human,” I answered.
“Ah. Well, that makes two of us. Wait a minute… if you’re a mortal, how are you able to live in the ocean?” he inquired.
“Our palace is at the bottom of the ocean. There is no water within it. And I am the son of Phorcys and Ceto, God and Goddess of the deep seas and oceanic creatures or monsters, is what some might describe them as,” I revealed.
The boy’s mouth dropped once I had shared this information with him. Was I too forthcoming?
“So, your parents are gods, but somehow you are a mortal?”
“Yes. A curse sent down from the Olympian gods, to remind my parents of where their loyalties should lie,” I explained.
“Hmmm. That’s interesting,” he said.
“Yes. This is my first time meeting another human, I’ll admit.”
“Really? Wait? Is this your first time on land, ever?”
“Sort of. I’ve only been on land twice, to visit the Goddess Athena and my sister…” I paused, remembering Stheno’s words as to not tell anyone about Echidna or her whereabouts. I tried to be as vague as possible when speaking about her. “…my sister who left the ocean long ago.”
“And what prompted you to come here to this island?”
This boy had an awful lot of questions. However, I sensed an innocence and compassion from this individual, so I felt comfortable enough to continue to share my background with him. “I had a vision from the Fates about the fish in the net,” I confessed. “I was told that any vision I have is a sign of destiny. So, the Fates must have guided me here.”
“Well, that’s unusual. I’ll be the first to tell you, there’s not much that goes on here, on this island,” he confessed.
“And where exactly am I? What island is this?”
“The Island of Seriphos in the Aegean Sea. It’s beautiful here, is it not? White sands, azure waters, lush green grasses and forests and a few mountains here and there.”
As he described this place, I spun around to take in the scenery. This island did seem very paradisiacal, unlike where Athena’s temple was, settled on dirt and stone at the Acropolis of Athens, where I had once been.
