Aphrodite's Choice

Chapter 59 – A Dishonest Bet

The girl’s heart filled with enormous sorrow, and tears blurred her eyes. It was the first time she felt an emotion like this since she was born. The tears spilled from her eyes and became pearls as they touched the sand. The pearls dotted the space around her, but some were borne away by the waves that touched the shore.

“Where are you?” she cried. The loneliness, which had lurked at bay after she met Hephaestus crashed into her with vengeance. The girl wrapped her arms around herself and rocked back and forth to calm herself, her breath escaping her in shuddering gasps.

A cold voice boomed from above. It seemed to be coming from everywhere and nowhere, simultaneously.

[What a sorry sight.]

It was the Erinyes. The voice didn’t sound sorry at all; it sounded cold, gloating and somehow expectant. The girl looked as good as a meal. She was the final child of Uranus, born out of his remaining power. She didn’t know this yet, but her power exceeded even that of the three Erinyes combined. If they could have her, they could challenge and overthrow any existing divine authority from the world.

The Erinyes smiled a predatory smile.

[You poor, poor thing. Abandoned. Our heart pains for you.]

“Who are you?” asked the girl, suspiciously.

[I am Tisiphone, this is Alecto and Megaera. You can call us The Erinyes.]

The girl frowned. She had never heard about them before. Then again, it hasn’t been long since he had been born. She was still unaware of the world, and the many beings who existed here.

The Erinyes laughed. Such a naïve little girl, so much easier to trick, thought the Erinyes.

[Women abandoned by men, girls by boys. These things are commonplace. Is it that upsetting, child? Why do you cry so much?]

“Be quiet,” thundered the girl, “You don’t know anything about me. Stop your nonsense and leave me alone.”

[Oh, but we do. We are sisters, you see. You and us.]

“Sisters?” asked the girl, perplexed.

[Yes. We share the same father. But sisters are sisters, are they not?]

The Erinyes had been waiting. They hadn’t known that the boy who was with her all this time was Hephaestus. They had waited, in patience, like a predator awaiting their prey, for the boy to leave. So, they could lure her in.

“If that is true,” said the girl adamantly, “Why have you not shown yourself to me until now?”

[We were searching for you. It took a very long time to find you. Alas, if we had found you sooner, you could have been spared the heartbreak.]

Their words, meant to be kind, only sounded hollow and empty to the girl. Their existence itself was dark and empty, summoning compassion was not what they were known for.

[Come with us.]

“To where?” asked the girl.

[Where you belong.]

Your body to Tartarus, thought the Erinyes, and your soul inside our bellies to feed us with power, little being.

The girl couldn’t trust them. They sounded sinister. She shook her head. “Thank you for your offer,” she said, “But I can’t come with you.”

[But why?]

“I made a promise to my friend,” she said, “He is not one to break promises. I think something foul happened to him. I have to find him first.”

The Erinyes’ smile became strained. If the girl wasn’t willing, laws of nature prevented them from forcefully taking her.

[Just come with us, sister. What would you even do if you found him? If you are able, that is. What if he had betrayed your promise?]

The girl was known for her stubbornness. She didn’t like to be backed into a corner or coerced into making a decision. She was wild like the waves, flowing at her own pace. “I said no,” she said sternly, “I am going to find him and see the truth for myself. Now, leave me alone.”

At that moment, an enormous sea bubble arrived at the shore. This was the girl’s cradle where she was born, and her home before she had found Hephaestus. It had provided her with comfort and protection, for its walls were as hard as coral and unbreakable. She boarded it without hesitation.

The Erinyes, sensing that their prey was going to escape, spread their large wings. Their movement caused walls of waves around the girl.

“What are you doing?” yelled the girl.

[We can’t let you leave like this, sister. We need to protect you. We can’t let you leave so recklessly. What if your broken heart killed you? Or what if your resentment turned you into a monster?]

“What nonsense,” said the girl, uncertainly.

The Erinyes saw the flash of doubt in her eyes. They glanced at one another and discussed how to trick the girl in coming with them. A bet was the easiest trick.

[No one can see the future, sister. If you must go, then perhaps you could make a bet with us.]

“A bet?” asked the girl incredulously.

[If you don’t find him or if he did betray you—]

“I already told you that’s not possible,” said the girl angrily.

The serpents on the head of the three Erinyes opened its mouth wide. A mind-obscuring poison filled the air. The girl was oblivious to it. She only sensed a faint fishy smell around her.

[Can you be absolutely sure about it? What if you can’t remember his face? What if you forgot everything that happened? Do you think you can’t turn to any other boy, except him? Do you still think you will be as close to him in the future as you are now? Can you still say with certainty that you can keep your promise?]

“Of course!” said the girl, her mind hazy from the poisoned air. She had agreed to the bet without knowing it. “No matter how things change, I will find him and keep my promise, as will he.”

[Then it’s a bet. If perhaps you can’t find him. Or if he doesn’t remember you, you will come to us. We bet on the side of failure. If you fail, you will come to us willingly.]

Thus, the unfair bet was placed. The girl’s memories were taken by the deceiving Erinyes and sealed away. She didn’t remember any of her time with Hephaestus. She only had a desire to find someone, not even knowing who.

[We will be waiting, young sister.]

Their dark laughter followed her as she began her journey towards the sea in a vague and hazy state of mind.