The Hind and the Dagger
* One off, wrote to cheer a dear friend. Many many thanks to Mary B. for giving me a crash course on the characters, relationships and the alterations made to the franchise so I didn't make a complete fool of myself. LOL
"What's with the early morning meeting? What's so dang important?" Jake muttered as he entered the dimly lit office, still rubbing his eyes. Jenkins and Eve stood talking to one side while Ezekiel slid in behind him.
"Sorry saving the world is eating into your beauty sleep…" Jenkins sniped.
Eve handed both the late comers a folder. They flipped them open to see several photos and papers. The top photo showed an ancient bronze dagger, plain in appearance.
"Approximately three hours ago, someone broke into the Field Museum in Chicago and stole this dagger from the Greek antiquities collection. The dagger was part of a lot on loan from the Greek government," Jenkins began explaining.
"What's so special about it?" Ezekiel lifted the photo out and turned it side to side as he examined the edges.
"The dagger itself, nothing, what it can do… that's another thing. Are any of you familiar with Eurystheus or the Ceryneian Hind?"
"Eurystheus was a Greek king that made Hercules retrieve the Hind as one of his labors," Jake replied. "The Hind was a giant doe with golden antlers, bronze hooves and was reputably the fastest creature on earth-able to outrun arrows. Eurystheus' goal was for Hercules to capture the Hind, angering the goddess Artemis who would hopefully kill Hercules for the deed. Eventually after chasing her all over Greece, Hercules captured the Hind by landing an arrow through her legs while she drank. Then he sweet talked Artemis into letting him borrow her by promising to return her. Eurystheus intended to keep the Hind and Hercules tricked him into coming to retrieve the deer himself. Once he got close enough, Hercules released and the Hind ran away, fulfilling the labor and Hercules' promise while humiliating Eurystheus."
All eyes were riveted on him.
"What? Much of ancient Greek art depicted mythology, and Hercules' labors were a popular topic," he exclaimed before going silent.
"Okay, now that the history lesson is over with… what does this all have to do with the dagger?" Ezekiel rolled his eyes.
"That's where the tale ended as far as the world knows. What you never heard was after his humiliation of losing the Hind, Eurystheus pleaded with the goddess Hera to avenge him his lost prize. The Hind was the vessel of great power and was coveted by many rulers. Hera indulged Eurystheus' plea. She placed an enchantment over the king's dagger. Any male heir to Eurystheus who used the dagger to sever the Hind, would receive her ability to restore and essentially live forever," Jenkins regaled them.
"And he never bothered to use it?" Eve asked.
"He never got the chance. After Hercules completed his labors, Eurystheus was caught up with his blood feud and attempted to kill all of Hercules' line. In the process, he and his sons were killed."
"So if his line ended, than what is so special about the dagger?" Ezekiel pressed, hoping for a response of intrinsic value.
"Eurystheus also had two sisters. One of them escaped the blood feuds over the throne and disappeared northward. It is believed she settled in what is now Germany. Her descendants are believed to be capable of using the dagger as well."
"So if this dagger is so valuable, why was it in a public museum? Shouldn't we have had it long ago?" Ezekiel grew bored with the whole affair.
"The dagger was lost for centuries. We only recently were able to positively ascertain that it was the correct dagger. The Greek government was negotiating with us to deliver the dagger after the exhibit closed next week. We were not in a hurry as the legend was never a public tale. How anyone could have known the legend and identified the dagger is troubling."
"We have to get the dagger to stop someone from becoming invincible?" Jake sighed.
"That's ideal, but since we have no idea who took it, we are taking the next best course. You three are going to Greece to find the Hind, warn her of the danger and take the necessary precautions to protect her- bring her here if you have to."
"We're going to Greece, to see a giant deer with gold antlers? Okay, that does sound kind of cool," Ezekiel relented.
"Wait, what about…" Jake interrupted.
"She's got lab work being done. The three of us can handle it," Eve answered.
"Eve's taking point on this," Jenkins noted.
"Shouldn't I take point? I mean, I am the most knowledgeable about this topic," Jake insisted.
"Yeah, isn't it a rule if you're hunting deer, you have to follow the redneck?" Ezekiel teased. Jake's eyes narrowed as he shot a glare the thief's direction before returning them to Jenkins and Eve.
"Actually…" Jenkins' eyebrows rose as he spoke before immediately plunging into a scowl, "No. Eve has point and she'll make the initial contact with the Hind alone."
"What, she doesn't like men or something?" Ezekiel joked.
"Yeah, we'll go with that," Jenkins muttered as he turned away and began playing with something on the counter behind him.
"But…" Jake tried to argue.
"You boys heard him. Let's get going. We're almost four hours behind now," Eve barked.