Chapter 21 – A Well Earned Vacation
Submitted: 25 April 2012
"What do you think?" shouted Antiones over the crashing waves.
"Brilliant!" Harry shouted back. He closed his eyes and let the mist from the wakes of the Hippocamps cool him off. The giant sea-horses would occasionally toss their great tails about and douse the entire chariot in a fine mist of sea water. Only the sharp bite of Hermione's nails into Harry's arm distracted him from the bliss.
Harry stole a glance at his mate. A sickly shade of green, her nails burrowed deeper and deeper into his skin. Lydia noticed Hermione's distress and pulled a crystal vial out of a small bag. "Only one drop on the tongue," she suggested from her cot at the back of the chariot.
Luna leaned over the edge of the chariot like a small child as she yearned to get as near as possible to the dolphins that happily swam beside chariot. Dolphins and sharks of all kinds were matching their speed and leaping out of the water in joy as they tagged along. "Do they always do this?" Luna asked dreamily.
"Oh yes," answered an enthusiastic Antiones. "Poseidon's chariot has always inspired the creatures of the sea. He was a great lover of the water and he took to the traits his followers bestowed upon him as well as any Tyrant besides perhaps Aphrodite or Dionyses. He was an avid fisherman and he did everything in his power to make sure these waters were well stocked. He had Hephaestus build this great sea chariot because he took his dominion seriously. He even built a great city under the sea."
"Atlantis?" asked Luna as she leaned far over the edge and ran her fingers through the water.
Antiones was impressed, "You've heard of it?"
Hermione, her colour returning quickly, couldn't help herself, "The myths surrounding Atlantis are very popular in England. It's real?"
"Of course. One moment and I will explain." Antiones handed the reins to Rolf, "Take this a moment. Keep the needle between here and here." Rolf watched carefully as Antiones demonstrated. Antiones then settled in next to Luna and Hermione, "Atlantis was originally founded on an island. It wasn't always an underwater city."
"How's that?" asked Hermione.
"Poseidon founded the city on an island near Argos. He used Atlantis as a staging ground for his conquests. He recruited only the most powerful Tyrants to live there promising them a city with no citizens. Soon after Poseidon's death they decided to separate from the known world. They sank the island."
"It is said that eventually they learned to breathe in water. They developed an affinity for sea grasses and some would even farm the bottoms of the sea in the shallower places. There is even a story that the very first mermen and mermaids were actually residents of Atlantis that grew tired of the bubble. Eventually it grew too small for such a thriving civilisation. There is still a small trade between Argos and Atlantis. They offer small amounts of gold from shipwrecks or pearls from the sea in trade for luxuries they cannot cultivate or find on their own underwater."
"That is amazing," Hermione raved.
"What is amazing," Rolf cut in, "Is that a chariot this large can go this fast with only four horses pulling it. This chariot is the size of a small boat!"
Antiones admired Rolf's confident hand on the reins, "Poseidon had two chariots made. The one seen in most of our artwork was his battle chariot. It was also pulled by four Hippocamps but it could travel from Corinth to Crete in less than an hour. By the looks of the seas today, I'd estimate our voyage will take closer to two or three."
They hit a wave at an odd angle and salty spray doused them all. Harry tried not to snigger when Hermione wretched at the taste of the water, "I knew you didn't care for heights but you aren't any fonder of the sea, are you?"
"Leave her be," warned Lydia. "Hermione, won't you please come back here with me and enjoy the sun? Not often will you find a lovelier day."
Other than the heat, it was a fantastic morning. The dolphins could be heard whistling and chirping happily to the Hippocamps. The mighty beasts neighed back cheerily as they effortlessly led the chariot with pride. The Hippocamps were large majestic turquoise seahorses with front quarters of a regular horse and fish tails in place of their hindquarters. They were harnessed to the chariot four wide. Harry couldn't help but pull out Hermione's camera and capture a picture of Rolf at the reins. Rolf's head held high and long sandy hair caught in the wind, Harry couldn't help but think this picture would eventually be blown up for a mantle one day.
Harry didn't stop there. Hermione leaped under a towel to avoid being shot in a bikini. "Don't even think about it Harry," she warned. Instead he caught a few candid shots of Luna as she continued to lean over one of the sides of the chariot to run her hand through the water. Her shoulder length blonde hair would have caught in the wind like Rolf's if not for the wreath of laurel that held it fast. She wore a short sleeveless linen tunic that looked more in place at a toga party than on a maiden of Hellas. Already, her shoulders were pink from the sun. She, unlike Hermione, was quite happy to have a few pictures to take home with her.
Soon Luna migrated to the back of the giant chariot with Hermione and Lydia and all three lounged on cots soaking in the sun while chattering away. The blokes were up front immersed in their own conversation. Harry was brushing up on his history, "So, Crete. The place we are heading. It was home to the Minoans? Did Aphrodite come from Crete or was she Mycenaean?"
"It is said that she was from Cyprus," answered Antiones as he continued to watch Rolf who had yet to relinquish the reins. "Cyprus at that time was under the influence of the Minoans."
"But Hephaestus and his family was not from Crete? He was Mycenaean, correct?" Harry was going to get this right.
"It's complicated," Antiones explained. "Once the everyday citizens of Hellas deified the Tyrants they essentially rewrote history. Zeus, Poseidon and Hades were brothers as is told but they were not the sons of Cronus as is written. Cronus was leader of a rival band of Tyrants called the Titans."
"I read a little about that," Harry mused. "Cronus defeated his father Uranus?"
"That is a fallacy as well," answered Antiones. "Cronus and his Titans were no more than a tribe of very powerful bandits and thugs that harassed villages along the northern outskirts of Mesopotamia. Driven from the East by Sargon, Cronus raided the settlements of our land and sacked the cities one by one. They were like locusts...consuming and destroying all they came in contact with."
"Uranus was the last leader of the greatest of the Minoan tribes that lived on the peninsula. The Titans met Uranus at Argos and Cronus made short work of him as he pillaged the last free settlement of our land. What followed were three centuries of chaos when the people built little of enduring value knowing it would soon be destroyed or consumed by these wretched men."
"No-one tried to stop them?" Harry looked decidedly uncomfortable. He wondered if something similar would have happened to England had Voldemort not been stopped. He was nearly sure it would have, actually. He shivered at the thought.
"The Titans were a rather nasty lot." Antiones scowled, "Before Sargon stopped them, they'd ravaged most of modern day Turkey. They forced the warlord Sargon to solicit the help of the Semitic tribes to the west and together they drove Cronus from Asia. The Titans would pillage a city for no reason and then kill the strongest of the men...leaving the weaker men to rebuild. Soon, the villagers would not even try to stop the Titans when they marched in to rob the village of its food."
"How did Zeus get involved?" Harry was never much for history at Hogwarts but this had nothing to do with goblin rebellions. His head was full of men with swords charging one another on the field of battle. He imagined Zeus standing a head taller than the others flinging lightning bolts to and fro.
And Harry's excitement was contagious. The witches had even taken notice. Antiones took a deep breath and thought back on his studies at Olympia as a boy, "No-one knows how the Mycenaeans got got involved. Many suspect it was a matter of time before Cronus made all of Hellas ripe for the plucking. There is a story that a farmer's wife prayed for a saviour when Cronus rode in one day to kill her husband and young boys. She predicted that Cronus would meet a wrath like he'd never seen and would be struck down by lightning from the sky."
"However they arrived, Zeus and his two brothers were powerful warriors," Antiones explained. "But Cronus and his band of Titans were just as fierce. Cronus had the ability to temporarily stop and even manipulate time. He was also immune to the effects of time on himself. He would even brag that he would see danger coming and turn back time so that he could kill his foes after taking them by surprise."
"Then how did Zeus win?" asked Harry.
Antiones couldn't have looked happier to be asked, "Zeus was a most clever man. He allowed Cronus to become a victim of his own arrogance."
"How did they do that?" asked Harry.
"in that Age, men fought almost exclusively with swords. Zeus was not like his brothers. Poseidon and Hades were men of war. They enjoyed the fight up close. Sure, Poseidon had a gift for manipulating the water but he fought with a triton or a sword. Zeus, on the other hand, had a talent for conjuring. He would use his sceptre like a wand he used to cast his...magic..." Antiones made a face like he didn't like the taste of the word "...lightning would shoot from his sceptre or from the clouds." Antiones continued, "The brothers hatched a plan and split apart. Poseidon and Hades brought their tribe to Argos by water and announced publicly their plan to defeat Cronus and his Titans. Meanwhile, Zeus played the part of a meagre private in their colour guard. He was fair with a horn and he fit in fine."
"Hades was a brilliant general. He rallied the Mycenaeans with a promise that when the time came the clouds themselves would fight for them. Poseidon brought a fleet of fifty vessels to land at the shores of Argos...each holding a hundred warriors. Those warriors marched on the walls of Argos. When they could not overcome the walls by land, Poseidon used his talent for manipulating the sea and he crashed a great tsunami onto the city walls by sea. The waves brought the wall down and the men rushed in."
"For three days, Hades and his warriors beat Cronus and his Titans back one house at a time. By the third day, Cronus knew he was beat. He and what men he could save retreated first to Corinth and then finally to a group of mountains that for years had served as a haven for vagabonds and nay-gooders."
"Hades was not the least bit intimidated. He sent his warriors into the mountains in pursuit. Chariots were useless in the mountains but the skies rained arrows. The fitting climax was when Cronus and Hades agreed to fight head to head as champions to end the battle. Hades agreed because he cared for his men and he knew they were taking heavy losses. Cronus also agreed. Knowing he was outnumbered, he felt he had an advantage fighting one on one with his capability to manipulate time."
Harry cut in, "Wait. So they just found a spot and fought it out?"
"It wasn't quite that simple," laughed Antiones. "My people have always taken challenges very seriously. The preparations took a week and both sides worked together to establish the rules. They found a flat spot nestled between two minor peaks that provided enough room for each side to watch. The Mycenaeans sat along the rise of Northern peak and the Titans sat to the South."
Antiones sighed, "I can only imagine what the fight was like. Both Hades and Cronus were powerful men. Hades had a thick jaw and shoulders that could move the mountains themselves. He stood a full head taller than most men of his age. His reputation for being a keeper of the dead came from his propensity to stack bodies around him during battle."
"Cronus was more crafty. Not only could he manipulate time but he'd had years to learn the nature of combat. Three hundred years and he looked no more than twenty. Quick and shifty, he would chatter on while in battle in hopes of distracting his opponent. One never knew what angle he would come from because he would simply disappear and reappear behind you in the time you blinked."
"It must have been some fight," Rolf remarked from the reins.
"You have no idea," Antiones answered.
ZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Cronus found himself with his hands full. Hades brought his sword down with a speed and power unmatched by mortal man. The clangs of bronze meeting bronze rang through the mountains. Hades brought his thick blade down time and again from over his shoulders and Cronus would desperately throw his own blade up to block. After a particularly tiresome exchange Hades and Cronus stood opposite of each other huffing and puffing from exhaustion. "Take a break?" asked Hades between gulps of air. "Two minutes?"
"Agreed," answered Cronus as he stumbled to his second.
Both of the champions' seconds called out for refreshment and skins were brought for them to drink from. Each took a knee and listened to advice on how to approach his opponent. Hades felt guardedly confident. He felt he had the better end of it with his brother Zeus watching from the crowd but he was realistic as well. Cronus was undefeated for a reason.
The action resumed soon enough. Hades came out swinging. This time Cronus was prepared and he began to use his opponent's heavy blows to his advantage. Rather than meet his opponent's blade directly, Cronus began to flick his wrist and drive his opponents sword down even harder to the ground in an attempt to disarm him. This confused Hades at first but a smile eventually crept across his face, "A sneaky bastard, aren't you? It's not wonder you duel so well. I imagine most of your opponents let their guard down thinking they are doing battle with a raw young man."
Hades changed to low sweeping swipes at the Titan's legs having learned that Cronus was nervous defending his lower body. The change in strategy worked. Eventually Hades knew he'd tire out the Titan if he continued with the strategy.
Cronus would not give up easily. It wasn't long before he had timed the Mycenaean's swings and in the middle of one of Hades's more powerful swings he disappeared. In an instant he reappeared behind his larger foe and struck Hades from behind with a thrust to the back, "Take that, barbarian!" Hades felt the sting and fell to a knee.
Thinking his foe was done, Cronus brought his own sword up to strike. Hades made a brilliant move and spun on his knees - swinging at Cronus's sword itself at the hilt. The resulting blow disarmed Cronus with a"throng!" and the Titan was left holding his empty sword arm gingerly.
The Mycenaeans cheered...but only for a moment. Before everyone's eyes, the Titan vanished. Hades was left looking desperately in every direction. His head was on a swivel knowing that the Titan could strike from anywhere.
Hades never saw the Titan alive again. Instead, Hades and everyone near him were thrown to the ground as lightning shot in bursts from the sky. When the smoke cleared a man in white robes stood over the burnt remains of Cronus and declared to the Mycenaeans, "I am Zeus, master of thunder and lightning! This Trickster," Zeus point to the charred remains of Cronus, "planned to strike your hero from behind. I have no mercy for those that reap their rewards unjustly!"
"Titans!" Zeus now faced his former foes, "Your King is dead. I encourage you to join my brothers and we shall all build a palace on this very spot that shall have no equal. Together we shall rule from this mountain! Your alternative is to challenge me. If you choose to fight then you shall join Cronus," Zeus pointed to their former leader still smoking on the ground, "and together you may search for a new plane to conquer!"
Zeus waited as the Titans conferred quietly. It was not difficult to hear the fear in their voices as they discussed their options. However skilled they were as warriors, none had seen lightning brought to the ground at will. As the voices died down, he asked, "Anyone here care to challenge our claim?"
There were no challenges.
ZZZZZZZZZZZ
The story was interrupted by giggling from the back of the chariot. Antiones wasn't amused, "Can a man not tell a tale without interruption?"
Hermione couldn't stop her giggling, "I'm rather fond of your story. It's your wife. She observed how worked up you blokes got as the action reached its climax." The young witch blushed, "She said if you keep up like this that the lot of us would be riding home on dolphins as she rav..."
"That'll be enough of that!" Antiones barked. The former king was not easily embarrassed but his wife was not normally one to speak so plainly in front of company.
Again, the witches giggled.
Antiones turned to his mates, "A strong sun and a cask of wine makes for a mouthy wife..."
"...And a disrespectful husband finds he has plenty of time to practise with his sword on his own," checked his wife.
Antiones surrendered with a wince, "What do you say we return to the story?" He took a deep breath, "You might guess at the rest. Zeus became the king of kings. Hades became the ruler of the lands. Poseidon became the ruler of the seas."
"But how did Zeus convince his brothers he should become king of kings?" Harry asked.
"Hades and Poseidon wanted titles and honour," Antiones said with a smile. "But they weren't interested in managing a kingdom. Zeus gladly gave Hades all the mainland and Poseidon all of the islands and seas. While they busied themselves with conquest of their domains, he offered to follow behind and organise the conquered lands. In return, he asked for only two domains for his very own...the sky as a symbolic dominion and Mount Olympus as his seat of power. He somehow understood that while his brothers would have all of the land...he would own the citizens' imaginations."
"So, he was not literally the king over all?" Hermione asked.
"Not at first," Antiones admitted. "Actually, he did better. He built an Empire that would stand for centuries. As his brothers conquered the lands around them he followed behind and secured assurances. Freely, he let the kings have their lands back for only a 'small' tribute of men and gold. He explained to the kings that he and his brothers had no interest in ruling the cities day to day. Zeus even went so far as to tell the kings that they had lost to his brothers in war because they were gods and that as long as they were worshipped as such his brothers would protect them."
Harry interrupted, "The kings believed him?"
"Are you kidding?" Antiones laughed. "They were complicit in the whole lie. They had their scribes make up many of the stories. As Zeus married and had children the tales flooded out. Cities began to claim his children and members of his family as their patron gods. He even named Athena after Athens so they would accept her as the patron God. When they refused, Poseidon stormed the city and placed his own son Theseus on the throne."
Lydia remarked to Hermione, "Our settlement of Delphi adopted Apollo after he helped fight off the dragon known as the Python. Soon a whole subset of our literature was based on the one upsmanship of the cities as they exaggerated whatever act their patron had performed. Soon, each city had its own set of Tyrants that were fighting twelve headed hydra and three headed dogs."
Antiones was growing impatient with the constant interruptions from the witches, "Yes. Well, one day the older brothers realised they'd conquered all of Hellas. There were no more lands they wished for. Everyone was happy. The people now had a common heritage coupled with local autonomy. The kings had Zeus and his family to give them legitimacy. The family of Zeus had respect, honour and unlimited gold. Zeus had become the de facto King of Kings and his empire would live for centuries in the minds and imaginations of even us today. Even now, you must admit, you think of Zeus as this all powerful being of the past. I have not met a single foreigner that doesn't have a vague feeling of respect for our counties heritage and for the name of Zeus."
Rolf nodded agreement, "No arguing that."
Antiones laughed, "What's more, when his brothers retired from warfare, Zeus convinced his brothers and their families to live at the Pantheon. Without their ever realising it, he used their treasures to build his own playland - and they happily stayed there as his guests. They probably wouldn't of cared if they had noticed. Remember, these men were warriors...not builders. Because Zeus was careful in crafting the image of the Twelve Gods of the Pantheon, there was little jealousy."
"But this must have taken years," Hermione was caught thinking out loud.
"Zeus lived much longer than the others. When he defeated Cronus he found the Titan's ring held his power over time."
"No-one noticed? They must have eventually figured it out," Harry asked as much as said.
"Not for a long time," Antiones shrugged. "At first even he didn't know what it was. He had initially taken it as a trophy. After a decade or so it dawned on him when his wife Hera remarked that he looked that after ten years he looked the same age as the day she met him. Remember, he was the youngest brother anyway. It's explained in his journals."
"Journals?" asked Hermione. The longing in her voice was lost on no-one.
"They are held in the vault. An abridged copy is used as a text for our Fifth Year History Class. If you ask Lydia nicely she might find you a copy," Antiones teased. "Zeus didn't write often - sometimes not for years at a time. He mentioned how sad it made him to see Hera grow old in front of him. Many of the Myths written about her jealousy over his affairs stem from her resentment that he barely aged those last forty years. Hera was mother to Demeter then Hephaestus then Athena. They were married for more than fifty years. Unfortunately, as she grew older he began to ignore her and she put up with his dalliances."
Harmione chimed in, "Demeter was his daughter? What about Hades kidnapping Persephone and making her his wife? If Demeter..."
Lydia chimed in, "Yes. Persephone was Zeus's grandchild."
Hermione's face screwed up in disgust, "Ewwww..."
"Not one of our better moments as a culture," Antiones admitted. "Demeter wanted Hades killed but Zeus wouldn't have it. Hades needed heirs and he was old. Zeus gave Persephone to him as a gift just as he gave Aphrodite to his son Hephaestus. Besides the ring, his son Hephaestus was the single most important key to his success."
"Why?" Rolf and Harry asked simultaneously.
"Hephaestus was a true genius and perhaps the most talented Tyrant of any Age. Hephaestus built more great relics in his lifetime than any smith before or after. He infused great powers into these objects. A chariot that could fly for Apollo. A helm of invisibility for Hades. Poseidon's triton and chariots. A bow for Eros. I could go on until we reached Crete and still describe more."
"How long did Zeus actually live?" asked Hermione.
"He lived about seven hundred years," Antiones estimated. "It is said that as generation after generation died he eventually lost the will to live. In his journals he wrote often of how he missed Poseidon. In fits of melancholy, he'd take the the ring off for months and years at a time only to meet some young maiden that would make him scramble for his jewels. One day, he simply decided to take off the ring and he never put it back on. He spent those last few years preparing for his death but it did no good. The Mycenaean civilisation collapsed soon after and the Dark Ages began."
Hermione remembered something Harry had asked early on, "You said at the beginning of all of this that it somehow tied into the Minoans and Crete?"
"Would one of you mind rubbing oil onto my back?" Lydia asked the girls. "I wasn't allowed to bring a servant for fear there wouldn't be enough space."
Antiones chose to ignore his wife, "It was Poseidon who conquered the Minoans but not without the help of his son. The place we are visiting today is the labrynth that was built by Daedelus. It was a maze that sprawled beneath the Imperial grounds and it held a great beast."
"The Minotaur?" asked Hermione.
"You've heard of it?" asked Antiones.
His wife Lydia was becoming ever more amused, "Love, I imagine she has heard many of your stories. She's the most well read individual I've ever met."
Hermione blushed, "I have some relearning to do. Much of what was taught to me was wrong, it seems. It seems my teachers based too many of our lessons on Muggle accounts." Hermione noticed Antiones and Harry share a look of exasperation, "But you should continue, Sir."
"Right. Where was I?" Antiones asked himself. "The Minoan King had a son that was half bull and half man. By then, Poseidon was too old to fight this abomination himself. His son and chief lieutenant, Theseus, volunteered."
Harry's attention finally reached its limit. This was not the question he had asked at all. He'd been interested in Aphrodite and that statue. His mind wandered as Antiones told the story of Theseus and the Minotaur. Tomorrow he and Hermione were returning to England. There was plenty to return to. Winky would have her baby soon. Harry'd promised Andromeda he'd visit his godson soon. He'd made no headway on the mystery of how those secrets leaked out of the Cauldron. He knew there'd be a tug of war between Eliza for quality time and his partner, Auror Mason, who would want to hit the road running with their new investigation.
September would be a busy month. Oh...and he couldn't dare forget that he needed to find a proper gift for his mate for her birthday in a few weeks.
A/N: Not my favourite chapter. I don't say that often. I hope you like it more than me. Let me know if you do.
Next chapter we return to England.