Psychic Company: Case 01 - Athena Pt.2
"The rest of us will go meet the mad goddess."
It was about an eleven-hour ferry ride across the Aegean Sea and a twenty-minute drive up to Selçuk from Kuşadası. They passed a graveyard on the way into Selçuk and a quiet sense of foreboding came over the team. They all hoped death would not follow them here.
Selçuk was a smallish town close to the coast. The main roads were made of grey brick and thick palms decorated the medians. Their hotel looked more like a rundown apartment complex than anything else, but their rooms were really quaint and there was a nice eatery across the street. In fact, that was where they met for dinner to talk over their next steps.
"How do you say this town's name again?" Emily said. Sofia said it three times, slowly. "And this is Team Rooster's first time here?"
"Well, we've been to Kuşadası before, but never Selçuk. It's easier to take the south road to Aydın through Söke since there's a little pitstop there for us field agents," Sofia explained.
"Enough chatter. Hurry up and order so we can move on to talk about more important things," Ines said. Kain agreed with her. Charles, Ethel, and Guilherme weren't paying attention at all, already looking at their menus—the latter of which helping with other two with the Turkish food names.
There wasn't enough time to have a leisurely dinner, however, because as soon as someone came to take their order a loud explosion came from over the hill outside town. A car down the street crashed into a storefront and people started running around screaming.
Ines rushed to her feet. "That came from the site of the old Temple."
Emily didn't understand what people were saying but managed to pick up on the word Athena and knew trouble had begun. "What are they saying?"
"They're praying to Athena," Guilherme replied quietly.
"What's going on?" Ethel said, a wide look in her eyes.
Kain scowled menacingly. "It's Athena. She's already here." He turned to Ethel, meeting her fear with his seriousness. "Imagine all the things Athena stands for—courage, wisdom, inspiration, reason—but twisted, exaggerated. Courage becomes fearlessness to the extent of self harm; wisdom becomes arrogance in the face of defiance."
"Why is she doing this?" Emily asked. "I get that she's a malicious aspect of Athena, but what's the point in coming here to Selçuk?"
Ines sighed. "I have a theory about that—it's Pallas Athena, isn't it?" She looked around the table as she continued, "It's the version of herself after accidentally killing her friend and absorbing her essence. Faced with the death of a loved one by her own hands, flooded with the memory of death that wasn't her's, she must have been driven mad. Gods were never supposed to know death. She must be here because her body is failing her and she's seeking out the remnants of Artemis' power to prolong her existence. The Temple of Artemis was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world—the soil alone is infused with the goddess' power. We have to go. Now."
"Okay, uh, we should split up," Emily said.
"We're going to need everyone to go up against—" Ines began but was cut off.
"No," Emily said. "The town needs protection. Kain, Guilherme. Stay here and protect the people. Locate those who've been twisted by Athena's energy and secure them. Make sure they don't cause any more harm. The rest of us will go meet the mad goddess."
The Temple of Artemis was nothing more than rubble and an old column in a field, but Athena wasn't after the leftover structures there. She reached down and touched the ground, her shawl falling to the ground at her side, and began sucking up the energy there. A ghostly mirage of the old temple, bathed in light, erupted from the soil and surrounded her as her body grew in size, filling the artificial structure. Her body began to glow as her height quickly reached four meters—thirteen feet. At the fake temple's front steps, the enthralled kowtowed upon the ground, a feeling of euphoria bursting forth from their hearts. Athena glanced in their direction, causing several fanatics to withdraw blades from their cloaks and, with calculated swiftness, slit their own throats. They had become the pitiful prey within this Athena's twisted fantasy.
Emily and the other agents from the company arrived in time to witness the horrific scene. Blood pooled around limp bodies. Ethel hid behind Charles, clinging to his coat, while the others simply stared on in bitterness. Though they thought it a waste of life, Athena stood in the middle of the temple, laughing euphorically. She was in a fit of madness from the sacrifices and howled at the sun, daring someone to strike her down.
Emily stepped forward and Athena shot her a stunning glare before revealing a horrifyingly thin smile. "It's you people again," Athena said. Emily swallowed.
"That's right. We've come to return you to your vessel."
"Hmph. That thing?" Athena eyed the capture device within Sofia's hands. "I will never return. Can't you see I've been rejuvenated? There's no need to contain me any longer. I've come to rule over the people again. All will be right." Athena's eyes widened with glee as she spoke.
Emily glanced back at Ines before taking another step forward. "I want to solve things without a fight, if I can. Could you please surrender?"
A crack appeared in Athena's otherwise beautiful face. "Ha? Inconsequential human like yourself—you think you can tell me what to do?" Her eyes flashed a different color and her expression twisted into one of flippancy. Her voice, when she continued, seemed to echo and fill the air with electricity. "Feeble, trivial, clay creature. Abandoned by your mother, abused by your father, ignored by all else. This truly was your one chance to burn. Wasn't that what you thought? Since it didn't matter to you if you expired or not, why don't I just grant your unasked wish?" She reached for Emily but grasped air. This Emily was an illusion created by Ines' ability, disappointment clear on her translucent face.
Charles, hidden within the nearby thicket, pulled out a long strip of plastic from his mouth and upon it was the glowing, echoing phrase, "Onları birbirine bağlayın, bağlayın, koruyun." He winced in pain as the last of the strip ripped from his throat, and whipped it toward the group of fanatics. The strip of words flew over and became chains that bound them to the earth and each other. Behind him, Ethel placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder as she removed her glasses and glared at Athena's spear, blinking twice. It exploded immediately, getting so hot that the corrupt goddess had to drop it. Sofia took this opportunity to hurl boulders at her, knocking her off her feet.
Athena grinned maniacally. "You think you can best me?" she murmured and shoved her fingers into the dirt. The skies darkened, her body glowed like the moon, and she sucked up the last of Artemis' remaining energy. Two extra arms burst forth from her shoulders and in their hands the iconic silhouette of Artemis' bow appeared—a crescent moon with a string of stars. She arched the bow up high, pulled back, and fired. A barrage of stone arrows fell upon the town of Selçuk. It was as if chunks of the moon itself fell upon the earth. She rose from the ground and, after swinging a wave of raw magic at the agents, took long strides towards the town, bombarding everything with her relentless stone arrows. She was devastating. She raised her first pair of arms and collected the souls of the dead, further revitalizing her. The corrupt goddess continued to laugh as her body filled with an ecstasy never known to her before. Anyone without a degree of magical resistance became instantly enthralled just by the sight of her, so strong was her presence. Needless to say, the town was in complete chaos.
The agents by the temple, stunned by the raw magic thrown at them, were slow to recover. Their bodies overcharged with magic, it was a struggle for them simply to control their abilities.
Ethel cried out as her eyes burned. Charles, even in his exhausted state, still reached out to cover her eyes. She smelled burning flesh and yelled at him to stop but he simply smiled and said, "Your glasses broke, right? It's all right. My hands can be healed, but you couldn't forgive yourself if someone innocent died because of your eyes, right? Just let me do this until we can find your spares." His voice was rough and cracked as he spoke, filling the air with a weird energy. Clearly, he was in pain, and exhausted, but was nevertheless steadfast in his decision. Ethel sucked in her lips and beared with it.
Emily rose to her feet, struggling to shake off a lightheadedness that so completely permeated her mind. Her throat stung. Without saying anything, she charged forward into Athena's wake.
"Emily, wait!" Ines called after her but the field captain didn't even look back. She sighed and looked to Sofia, whose sturdy constitution meant a quicker recovery, and said, "Go after her." The younger woman nodded and took off.
It didn't take much for Sofia to catch up to Emily, who wasn't athletic to start with, and they entered the town together, following the path of destruction that the corrupt goddess left.
The Ephesus Archaeological Museum was completely destroyed, a path of rubble cutting right through it. The two women came upon it just as Athena reached down with her first pair of hands. To their horror, Athena came back up again holding Kain and Guilherme in each hand.
Athena giggled and said, "Look at these handsome men. One so stubborn and the other full of misfortune. Both so tasty!"
"She's going to eat them," Sofia said, her mouth agape in horror. She looked at Emily, helpless. "What do we do?"
Emily stared up at the corrupt goddess, frozen in fear and indecisiveness. She was the leader of this operation. She looked around her as she realised that all this destruction was really all her fault. All these people? Her responsibility. How many people must die for her to grasp the situation? It was like the world was in slow motion as she watched her teammates get closer to Athena's mouth.
There was an explosion of dread within her and her legs buckled. She fell to her knees and screamed. It was primal, instinctual. The air reverberated and shook Athena, causing her to drop both Kain and Guilherme.
Though stunned at first, Guilherme waved his hand and drew a pool of water from a nearby fountain for the two men to land into. He and Kain navigated through the debris and joined Sofia and Emily, who still hadn't stopped screaming.
Athena groaned at the noise, the pressure, and covered her ears with one set of hands. "Arrogant clay creature! I breathed life into you and this is how I'm repaid?" She reached for Emily with her other set of hands but was burned by Ethel's gaze as the young woman finally caught up with the others.
Despite being in pain, Charles pulled another spell from his mouth, this time using it to bind Artemis' bow, rendering it useless. Sofia took the opportunity to chuck boulders, knocking the corrupt goddess off kilter and slamming her into the ground with so much force the earth shuddered.
Emily took a deep breath, her energy clearly waning. Guilherme placed a hand on her shoulder and a soothing feeling eased her throat. Still, it wasn't enough for her to regain her strength and her next scream was noticeably weaker than her last.
Athena laughed as she returned to her feet, her hair a mess and her hands full of burns. "Nice try, young things, but nothing of your realm may dispatch me."
A blindingly bright orb of light appeared in front of Emily, stopping time for just long enough for Emily to instinctively reach for it and pull out an old candle lantern. Kain recognized it instantly.
"Ethel, light it!" he shouted. Ethel blinked at the candle wick, lighting it with a blue flame. "Emily, direct it at Athena!"
Emily raised the lantern, pointing it at Athena. The shriek that followed was almost unbearable as Athena's body hissed and a white smoke filled the air. "What is this?" Emily asked.
"That's Gabriel's Lantern. It should purify Athena, at least temporarily, allowing us to capture her," Kain explained.
The agents watched in awe as Athena's body slowly shrank back down to its original size. What emerged from the smoke wasn't a mad goddess hellbent on power and rejuvenation, but a humble warrior goddess loyal to justice and full of serene divinity. She stepped toward the group, who were apprehensive about the approach, but nonetheless let her draw close. She wrapped her arms around Emily and took in a deep breath. "Thank you," she said. "Even if only temporary, it seems my sanity has returned." She looked around at the devastation around them with a face of regret. "I deeply apologize for what I've done. There is simply no hope for this aspect and I humbly beg of you to destroy me."
Kain frowned. "We don't have the means to," he said apologetically.
Athena smiled sadly. She eyed the capture device and said, "In that case, I allow my imprisonment. Please, do it quickly! There isn't much time."
Ines stepped out from behind the group, aimed the capture device at a smiling and crying Athena, and flipped the switch. In an instant, the goddess' body turned into a black mist and was sucked into the device.