Prometheus

 

 

It was Typhoeus; the immortal storm giant with the two coiled vipers in place of legs. On his hands, were a hundred serpent heads; fifty in each hand. He had the wings of leather to fly through the storm while his pointed ears could pick up the sound from the roar of the storm. His eyes could see through the hail of water pellets. He was said to able to hurled red hot rocks from the sky and fire emitted from his mouth.

I called on the villagers to take my lead. It was their only hope.

"Run for the chateau." I told the ones that heeded my voice. "There would be sanctuary there."

I took up the crying child who had lost her mother in the rush, and comforted her as I ran. The chateau lies over the hill, into the deep valley where the river would flowed through by the side. It was built there before my time, but it was the only shelter I knew. I saw some of the villagers had taken to their farming tools to fight the monster, but what was mortal to them, who roam the skies and invoked the elements against us. I passed the child to a nearby lady and begged her to care for the child.

"Who's is she to me?" The lady screeched back to me. "I am saving my own lest I care for her."

Such was the selfish attitude of the mortals; others forsaken for their own. I looked to the child who had stopped crying. She nodded to me and it was our understanding.

"Run, my child. The chateau would be your roof." She did as I told her. I then stood there and looked to the dark skies. I went down on my knees and prayed for the mercy of the Gods.

"All mighty Zeus, please released these people of this burden. I am ready to serve my penance for defying your judgment. I, Prometheus laid my loyalty to you." I shut my eyes and let the tears flowed to the ground.

"Prometheus, you fool." I looked up and saw Ares, the God Of War hovering before my eyes. "Do you think it was Zeus who called on the calamity on your people? Its I who did this. I am Ares, the God of War. Peace would reign only upon my demise, but war would ignite on my command."

"Ares, you .....are a disgrace to us all." I pulled myself up and faced the other God. "How dare you invoke that to served your purpose?"

"Oh, my dear Prometheus. There are more. Your desired sanctuary housed not the only the rich lord of the land, but they are evil ones. They were the servant of Hades." Ares replied. "The chateau you see before you was once an asylum. They build over the foundation of the mad house to restraint their madness. And now you send in the lambs to be slaughtered."

The God of War laughed on my helpless expression.

"From the pan into the fire....or was it the fire into madness."

"No!" I turned my back and ran towards the chateau. It can't be. I can't have my people suffered more than they had with this monstrous being. I saw the people going into the chateau doors opened by the Lords who owned it. I saw not mortals but demons in disguise as mortals. I rushed to the doorway but it was closed to me. I banged on the doors and heard the screams.

The child.

The women who refused my request.

The families of innocence.

I fell onto my knees and clasped my face with my arms.

I cried out for the mercy of the Gods, or anyone who would see through this madness that I had committed my people. All I did was brought them relief, and yet I was banished and now punished with their death. In my despair, I stood up and turned to face the raging storm.

"Typhoeus, heed my words. Your storm would be your bane. I would called on the creation of mine to fight thee. They would run from you for now, but they would hunt you down in the age to come. One day, they would control you."

I placed my hands on the ground. I called on the very gift given to me as the immortal. I called on the creation of Man. I formed them from the water and earth, and not only there one, but thousands. I called on the carpentry skills of Hephaestus to build the wooden weapons of war; bows and arrows, catapults and ballista. I called on the skills of Athena; the Goddess of the Warrior. The men I created used their knowledge as warriors to fashioned up boulders to be thrown by the catapults while large arrows lined the ballista.

"For fire, I fight with fire. The fire that was once Zeus, and now I returned to thee." I set the men to light the very fire I taught them from the heavens. Scores of lighted boulders and arrows sailed towards the Typhoeus. They struck at the monster everywhere while it screamed in agony. It may rained its fury on the men I created, while they may perish in the fight, but there was equal numbers to replaced them in the battle.

"Behold, Ares. In the time to come, war would be waged in numbers that would never dwindle with the ongoing replacement. Each new one having learned from the previous one, improvised on the strategy and weapons. Man would be your army in war, but they would wield my wisdom and skills which you never nurtured in them. Like your ally, Typhoeus; large and powerful, but his lack of innovation would be his downfall."

At the moment, the monstrous God retreated with his storm while the creation from the earth and water rejoiced in victory. Ares looked stunned to the change in the battle, and left the scene. I turned to my creation and sighed.

"There is one more task for you." I looked to the Chateau. "That icon of madness must come down. Burn it to Hell if needed."

With my command, the army of Man lashed it fury on the Chateau. The structure burned down with its foundation turned to smoldering ashes. I walked towards it, and fell on my knees.

"Forgive me." I asked of the deceased. Then I asked the army of Man to covered the foundation with seedlings.

"Let the trees that grew over it would find a purpose in your development." I turned to the army of Man. One approached me and asked.

"What trees that grow here? Does it have a name?" He asked of myself.

"Cedar. It would be named as Cedar." With that, I was whisked off to the Hall of Olympus. There sat Zeus on his throne and he was furious.

"Prometheus, you are to imprisoned on the rocks of Olympus where the eagles would feed on your liver. Each day, it would feed while your liver would regenerate by itself. Such would be my command."

 

Footnote:

Prometheus was the God who created man from earth and water, gave them the gift of fire. He was imprisoned by Zeus to suffered the ordeal until he was freed by Heracles.