rivals | taejin

I

The myth of Athena and Medusa
[with a twist]

There once lived the three Gorgon sisters—Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale—children of the ancient marine deities Phorcys and his sister Ceto, chthonic monsters from an archaic world. The three sisters were priestess of Athena. Medusa was said to be very beautiful, even more than Athena herself, making her feel envy towards her. Not only that, but her two sisters were also jealous; Medusa was an attractive human while they two hideous beings.

One day, Poseidon's eyes fell upon Medusa, seeing as she was alone in front of Athena's temple. Poseidon took this chance and r*ped Medusa, all while Athena watched it happen in front of her eyes. Medusa, who was frightened and distraught, seeked help from the goddess Athena.
As a priestess, Medusa was supposed to be a virgin, therefore, Medusa was shunned. Athena then punished Medusa by transforming her into a hideous monster with snakes as hair and gained the curse that turned any living thing into stone with her eyes. Medusa was then exiled into isolation where she turned bitter and turned anything that crossed her path into stone.

After some time, Perseus had the blessing of the gods and a shield from Athena with which he battled Medusa and then beheaded her. Even after her death, her curse was still alive. It is said Perseus either gave the head to Zeus as a gift, or he—Perseus—kept it as a weapon.

And that was how her tale ended, or so is what is believed.

What people didn't know, was she had conceived a child. After she was taken advantage of by Poseidon, she gave birth to a baby boy. He was the only one who was able to keep her sane and kept her from going on a rampage against the gods and goddesses of Olympus. She was able to keep him safe, but after Medusa's death, he was left alone. He mourned over his mother's death, being left alone at such a young age. At the age of four, he learned to have full control of his powers. He had the power of his mother, being able to turn anything into stone with his eyes, but he chose when to use it and when not to at his own will. He also had control of water, though it was mostly limited to rivers and not very powerful with bigger bodies of water; like the ocean for example.

With these powers, he was able to survive. Along the way, he built his own life. All while never forgetting the cruelty his mother had to face.

•••

before someone comes for me:

yes, i know there's two possible tales of this myth. the good one and the bad one. in this case, i went for the bad one for the plot. so, yes i do know both stories. don't come for me! i read greek mythology for fun, not for it to become my profession.

anyway, i hope you enjoyed! stay tuned for the real first chapter! 💖💖