The Deviant Path to Olympus

Chapter 29

The moon was nearing its first quarter. Mimoza strode into the night with a heavy black cloak shrouding her physique. Her sandals patted into the stone road beneath the dark steps of the Acrocorinth. "What do you want?" She called out.

The Persian man with silky hair and fine wares stood across from her. His smile's teeth shined even in the darkness. "No need to be hostile, I'm only here to ask a question. My name is Neoshad of the Achaemenid dynasty. What is your title, Amazonian?" Neoshad tapped at his own wrist. It was to gesture towards her Amazonian scar on the front of her hand, but it just as easily showed the vast array of dangling crystals wrapped around his wrist.

"I am Mimoza, Amazonian of the Ionian tribes," Mimoza replied with a hiss. "And don't think I can't see your slave behind me."

Keveh, the night deviant with a demonic metal mask, watched her from a distance. He was leaned back against a nearby statue with his arms crossed, standing beneath the feet of a statue philosopher's feet. The black air matched his pitch colored sleeves.

"Keveh isn't hiding," Neoshad said waving a hand. "If he wanted you dead, he wouldn't need to hide."

Mimoza eyed closely at the both of them. She kept her composure firm despite knowing how vulnerable she was. "I've killed many Persians before today. Don't believe you're above any of them."

"I am," Neoshad said nonchalantly. "But that's besides the point. I'm here to seek the truth. What happened to the other deviants in this city? I know the Atenists didn't wipe them out. So what role did you play in this?"

Mimoza clenched at the gauntlet hidden beneath her cloak. With her powers crippled, the gauntlet and golden blade she had sheathed were the only weapons that could match against the both of them. "I don't know," Mimoza answered truthfully. "I came here looking for answers too."

Neoshad looked over to the side whilst stroking his hair. The calm smile on his face was wicked. His lack of concern only proved how much power he had over the situation. "I heard Amazonians went extinct." A cool night wind brushed past them as he spoke. "And yet here you are, defying expectations by being alive with that blood oath."

"We aren't so easy to kill. It comes with being Amazonian."

"I find it odd, though. The Asha order marked Amazonians as extinct, which has always been viewed as a missed opportunity. With how well they fought in the war, we could've made great use to Amazonian talents."

"I'm glad we couldn't give you that satisfaction."

"And yet you're still alive."

Neoshad walked off to the side. He kept his distance while circling around her like a stalking animal. "Tell me Mimoza, do you know how the war ended? Do you know what happened on that final day that caused Miletus city to fall?"

Mimoza clenched her fist, "I'm aware."

"The Amazonians betrayed their king, and brought the decapitated head of the Geek leader as a peace offering."

Mimoza hissed, "The Ionian League had fallen. The choice was to either be enslaved or to die fighting! We weren't going to die for the glory of a mad king, or become some damned Persian concubine!"

"So the rumors were true then, the Amazonians truly betrayed their king, and broke their oath in order to save their own order?"

Mimoza fell quiet. Neoshad stepped upwards the footsteps of the Acorcorinth. His echoing sound of footsteps bounced through the marble walls of the temple. He said to her, "I was there that day. It was the last city to surrender, a city that could have fought to the death. But before the battle could commence, a single soldier came forward for peace. As proof of their word, she dropped the king's head before the gates, proving that there was nothing left to fight for."