The public bus bumped as its tires hit a pothole. The noon sun shined through the window as I looked out of it. My eyes didn't miss a single nook or cranny.
Silena and I didn't find any other clues on our way back to the bus stop. No track marks or anything. It was like we were tracking a ghost.
There weren't any incidents either. We're now a few minutes from the mall, and everything seems normal.
I looked away from the window and towards the angry demigod sitting next to me. Silena hadn't said a word since we got on the bus. She was trying to glare holes into me instead.
"Is there something you want to say?" I asked Silena.
"Yeah. You shouldn've let those bullies get what they want. They were total jerks," Silena complained with an annoyed tone. She'd crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"And you were a jerk for trying to brainwash them. Seriously, what were you thinking? Even if it worked, you shouldn't brainwash random people!" I pointed out as I crossed my arms. "And don't casually say my name in front of strangers."
"Why? Do you not like your name or something," Silena questioned in turn.
"No, my name is my name. It is what I want to be called," I explained as one of my eyes twitched. "But names have power. There are dangerous spells that require the target's name, plus it makes it easier for them to track us down."
How many people named Atalanta could there be within the United States? Much less those my age?
It would be too easy for someone skilled to track down a half-blood like myself with just a name.
"Fine, ok, I get that, but they were random people invading our space. Those adults would've gotten in the way, and that boy was ugh…." Silena threw her head back and made an imaginary barf motion. "They said they're related to Apollo, right? Your family sucks."
"They're not my family," I instantly denied any relation. "Being my uncle's descendants doesn't make us related."
Silena nodded, seeming to say she wouldn't want to be related to them either. "I can't believe my charmspeak failed on them."
"You're powers aren't fully developed. Some people will be able to resist them until they grow stronger, and even after that. Either way, you need to think about when it's right to use your powers more," I offered Silena a mixture of understanding and condemnation.
"Yeah, I get it," Silena nodded. "But I still think we should've stood our ground and not let them bully us into leaving."
"They didn't bully us into leaving; I chose to leave. There may have been a way to stay, but I felt the benefits weren't worth the risk," I answered as the bus was approaching the mall's bus stop.
"Aren't you angry?" Silena asked with a frown. "It was your mom's temple, and you're really close to her. Don't you feel insulted? Isn't it like being yelled out of your home by strangers?"
Was I angry?
Thinking back on it, I was miffed by them.
Part of it was probably because of how they treated me within my mother's temple, but only a tiny part.
It may have been Mom's temple, but I don't have any feelings for it. At least not the level Silena seems to think I do. Comparing it to my home is a gross overstatement.
It's more "a place important to Mom" than anything like that. My affection for that place doesn't go any further.
What did annoy me was how they treated Silena. An adult shouldn't terrify a child and make them fear for their lives. If it had been Miyu in Silena's place…
"Yes, I was slightly angry," I answered Silena after a moment. "But not enough to impact my decision. I stand by it."
The bus stopped outside the mall when those words left my mouth. "It's over, so let's just go to the mall and then go home."
Silena stood up and grabbed her backpack. She didn't seem to like my answer, but she didn't say anything.
The two of us got off the partially-filled bus along with some other passengers.
The bus stop was near the mall's front, giving me a good view of its main entrance. Its glass shone brightly as the summer sun's light was reflected back.
The mall's parking lot was nearly full of cars, and the entrance was crowded with ordinary people living their daily lives.
There were groups of teenagers either happily socializing near the entrance or entering the mall with their friends. A couple shared a kiss as a family passed by them with hands full of shopping bags.
No matter who they were or why they were there, they were happily leaving their lives. Each one was embracing their own little slice of ordinary happiness.
In Fuyuki, the shopping district was run down and abandoned. All you could purchase were the bare necessities to live. There were not enough people to support entertainment stores, and the people who did live in Fuyuki didn't have the will to create them. Everyone was crushed under the hopeless aura that plagued my dying world.
These moments of ordinary happiness… the joy of just existing, was nearly forgotten.
I can only hope that wherever Miyu ended up, she could live a happy life like the people in front of me. As her brother, that was all that I could ask.
"Ata? Whatcha thinking about?" Silena asked me, pulling me out of my thoughts. "You have one of your weird expressions on your face."
I blinked and shook my head. Cool air rushed to meet my face as the automatic mall doors slid open. I'd been so lost in thought that I didn't realize how far we'd walked. "Nothing, just forget it."
Silena didn't push it, instead choosing to direct her attention towards the mall. "Get your head in the game. Now is the time to be serious."
I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes. Silena forgot everything else to focus on shopping. How she could enjoy shopping so much is beyond me.
Her blue eyes were scanning everything around us with a furiously greater than mine when we searched Mom's temple. It was like she was preparing for a death battle.
The first thing she did was set her sights on a map of the mall near the entrance. It had all the stores and their locations labeled and color-coded to make it easy to read.
She seemed to read it perfectly despite her dyslexia.
I didn't say anything and let Silena decide what we did and where we went. It wasn't like she'd listen to anything I said anyway.
Silena told me her plan after she finished looking at all the mall stores.
She was interested in three categories: Clothing, Beauty Products, and Toys.
The daughter of Aphrodite quickly picked which stores she wanted to visit first and which she wanted to save for later.
All I did was stand there helplessly and follow behind her when Silena dragged me in a random direction. We were moving so fast that I didn't even have a chance to read the first clothing store's name.
It was a massive store full of clothing for people of all ages. Each section of the place was broken up between gender and age. So, Silena obviously made a beeline to the section for girls our age.
Silena was in her element as we made our way over there. It was almost like she'd been here a hundred times before. Meanwhile, I felt lost and confused. The shop's layout was just too much.
Is this what she felt like when we were in the woods?
"Yes, we're here!" Silena cheered once we made it to our destination. Clothing around our size was either hanging on racks or folded neatly on nearby tables. Most of it looked like summer wear, fitting the season. "Though, I wonder if you should be looking at clothes for younger kids?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked because it felt like Silena was mocking me, but I couldn't understand how.
"Well, you're so short and scrawny that clothing for our age might be too big," Silena answered with an insultingly smug undertone. "Don't worry; the younger kids' clothing should be close by."
I glared at the ground.
It's not my fault my body is so tiny, and I don't like being short or scrawny.
My old body was anything but scrawny or short. Ok, by American standards, I may have been short, I was only about 5 centimeters taller than the average American woman, but I knew I would hit a growth spurt soon. If I hadn't died, I would have become above average for men. And I definitely wasn't scrawny; working out every day gave me lots of muscles. This body is only scrawny because it wouldn't put on muscle no matter how much I exercise, but I know I'll grow eventually. Both Mom and Dad are tall, after all.
"I was joking, Ata. It's not like the clothing is tagged 'six-year-olds only' or something," Silena laughed at me. She then looked over the clothing hanging on a nearby rack.
"Well, you're not funny," I answered while leaning against one of the rack ends. I didn't want to look at any of the clothing.
Silena looked at a few pieces of clothing before turning back towards me. "I never asked you, but what's your favorite type of clothing?"
I blinked before answering. The question caught me off guard since I never expected her to involve me outside copying what she wanted.
"I like practical clothing, or it might be better to say I don't love any one type of clothing."
In Fuyuki, I always had to wear long-sleeve shirts and jackets due to the year-round snowfall. Sometimes I wanted to wear something different, but never could due to the cold. Instead, I tried to look my best with the few bits of clothing I had.
In this life, I'm almost always wearing a jacket Mom gave me with a short-sleeve undershirt. The only reason I'm not wearing it right now is that it's too hot.
"Well, what do you think about this?" Silena asked while pulling a short-sleeved shirt off the rack. It was a blue and white striped shirt that looked like it might fit me.
"I guess it's fine," I eyed the shirt while responding. It reminded me of some of the shirts I wore in my previous childhood, before Fuyuki. "Blue is my favorite color."
'Really?" Silena looked at me in shock. "I would've thought it was white or green."
"No, those are my mother's favorite colors. She always gets me things in those colors, and other people assumed I liked them too. Now, whenever I get clothing, they're almost always white or green."
And I don't feel like it's right to correct them. The clothing was a gift I didn't deserve, so I have no right to be ungrateful. Besides, I can at least accept the feelings behind the presents, and it's not like I dislike those colors.
"Sounds miserable; why don't you can copy some stuff? Like some different clothes?" Silena questioned.
"I don't like to use projected clothing. My projections can disappear, leaving me possibly undressed," I shivered at the thought of suddenly being left in my undergarments.
"Wait, your copies can just disappear?"
"No, they wouldn't disappear on their own. But they could if there's a contradiction in my image of them. Like thinking a sword is indestructible, then them breaking would cause me to lose my image of the blade," I explained.
So, if I saw something that created a contradiction in my image of the clothing, it would fade away because I would no longer believe they were real.
"Well, I don't get all of that, but it still sounds safe enough," Silena went back to looking at clothing without regarding my warning. "So, why don't you try on this shirt?"
I looked at the blue shirt again. Unlike Silena, I have no interest in trying on clothing or anything. But that shirt did look like it was made out of something comfortable, and it was a color I liked.
Due to the delay, I've run out of spare clothing. My only options are to wear dirty clothing or project some more. So, I guess I can look at it before Silena starts looking for her clothing.
"Actually, are all of your clothes dirty too?" If I was out of clothing, she should be as well.
Silena's eyes widened in recognition. "Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you, but I'm out of clean clothes."
I nodded. Silena was tired last night and in a rush to leave this morning. Her forgetting to say anything isn't surprising.
"Ok, then we each need at least one set of extra clothing," I stated while grabbing the blue and white shirt from Silena. One use of structural analysis later and the shirt's image was stored in my mind. I then put the shirt back on the rack.
"Don't you need to try it on and do your magic thing?" Silena asked while tilting her head ever so slightly.
"I don't need to, and I just did it," I looked from the rack back to Silena. "Thanks for finding a shirt I like."
Usually, I wouldn't thank Silena for this, but it felt necessary. She instantly picked out a shirt I liked without any information or prompting. It's only fitting that I say thanks.
Silena became smugly happy from my thanks. The arrogant smile gracing her face told me it went right to her head. "I'm welcome. I wonder what else we can find for you… Ooh, what about this?"
The daughter of Aphrodite pulled a random summer dress off a different rack from the shirt. It was a mix of bright blue and pink.
My expression soured the longer I looked at it. "No, I don't like dresses."
"What?! Why?" Silena seemed surprised I dislike dresses. "I know you're a tomboy, but you don't like them even a little?"
"They make me uncomfortable," I answered simply while looking away from her curious gaze.
I still feel embarrassed from that time Mom saw me in one. It felt like she was laughing at me and mocking me.
"I don't get it. What's there to be uncomfortable about?" Silena asked as the gears in her mind began to work overtime.
"It just is, Silena. Some people don't like certain types of clothing," I said.
"Uh, ok," Silena didn't understand me but still back off and put the dress back on the rack. "A big part of fashion is being comfortable…."
I almost began to stare at Silena. What part of fashion includes being comfortable? Even someone like me, who knows nothing about fashion, knows comfort isn't a part of it.
I kept that doubt to myself, though. The answer probably wasn't something I could understand anyway.
Meanwhile, Silena had already switched from the dress to looking for some clothing for herself. She chose a pink shirt and shorts that seemed to match her perfectly, along with three other clothing sets.
"Ok, I'm good on clothing here," Silena declared before looking at me. "Oh, but we need to get you some shorts, longer ones probably."
It was true that I needed shorts, but why longer ones?
I followed Silena's gaze down to my knees. My entire body tensed as I did so
I forgot that some of my wounds could be seen on my body. It was easy to see some of my injuries on my arms and legs when I just wearing shorts and shirts. Dad will immediately notice them if I don't cover them up.
"Yes, there should be a few that cover my knees," I answered, causing Silena to nod.
It took less than a minute for Silena to find some and for me to trace them.
"Do you want to keep looking, or can we go to the make-up store?" Silena asked me despite knowing the answer. In fact, she was already walking away from the clothing section as she did so.
I nodded and followed next to her. "Do you know what you want?"
"No, but I can't wait to see all the beauty products they have. Hopefully, they'll have some stuff we don't have back home," Silena muttered.
I continued to absentmindedly nod. Everything she said was going in one ear and out the other.
Well, she seemed to be having fun and wasn't taking too long. So, everything is fine.
I thought she'd take a long time to shop, but she seemed to want to get in and out without wasting time. And her ability to do so was almost impressive.
As we walked through the crowded mall, not one person stopped to see why children were wandering around alone. Everyone was too absorbed in their worlds to see if others needed help.
Butterflies appeared in my stomach once we reached the next store. It had a huge black sign that said the store was 'Beauty – something or another.' I honestly couldn't read the second half of the sign.
Silena entered the store first, with me right behind her.
The business was full of countless different types of beauty products. From just a glance, I could see hair products and various types of makeup I don't know the name of. The store's environment was kind of serene and sterile. Everything was held on or in white display cases, and there was calming background music playing.
All the other customers were adult women, making me feel like we didn't belong.
Silena didn't seem to notice and just made a beeline for a nearby display. Thankfully, it was out of sight of everyone else in the store.
"fufufu," Silena laughed evilly while looking at a display full of expensive shampoos. "Normally, I can't try stuff because it's too expensive, but now that changes."
Silena's words brought me back to reality for a moment. Even if we're not supposed to be here, the worse they could do is kick us out. Which would probably happen anyway if anyone saw Silena's current behavior.
"Is the shampoo you use really that expensive?" I hesitantly inquired.
"Yeah, my dad will only get me one type of shampoo and conditioner each. And he wouldn't let me get any more until I use it all up," Silena explained with a sour expression.
I almost opened my mouth and said she should use three-in-one shampoo like I do, but my instincts stopped me. For some reason, I don't think things will end well for me if I say that.
The blue-eyed girl went back to looking at the shampoos, carefully reading all the labels. At the same time, I heard the door open but didn't look to see who it was. Hopefully, they wouldn't even notice us.
"Ok, there are a few I want you to copy," Silena whispered to me while pulling a bottle of conditioner off the display rack. "Here's the first one."
I absent-mindedly took it from her hands and used structural analysis on it. Once I was done, I went to put it back-
A hand suddenly came out of nowhere and took the bottle from my hand.
"So, this is what children are into these days," a female voice spoke as I turned to see who was behind me. Her exotic accident made her hard to understand.
The woman had long dark hair that she'd pulled over one shoulder and wore a black dress. Everything about her screamed high-class foreigner.
My body tensed as I looked up at her coldly beautiful eyes. Every cell in my body shook as I looked into them. My instincts were warning me that this woman was an extremely dangerous threat. Yet, I felt like I'd met her somewhere else before…
"Um… who are you?" Silena innocently asked the woman. At least she didn't try to charmspeak her.
"Oh, that's right. Where have my manners gone?" The woman offered a smile that felt oddly warm. It would've made me lower my guard if my body didn't refuse to. "I'm still trying to get used to this nation's customs and language."
"Really! Are you not from here? You're the first person I've met from a different country," the woman piqued Silena's interest. "Where are you from?"
"I am from a land known as Colchis, its princess in fact," The dark-haired woman began to introduce herself. From her land and title alone, a singular name appeared in my head- "Though, you probably haven't heard of it or know who I truly am. My friends call me Your Highness."
A fog appeared in my head. Whatever I was thinking about seemed to disappear like candy the day after Halloween. Yet, I felt like it was important.
"Really, you're a princess?" Silena's eyes looked Her Highness up and down, seemingly scrutinizing every inch of her. "I guess you do look like one."
"Ahaha, yes, I do," Her Highness let out a warm laugh. "Now, may I ask your names?"
I shook my head, not to deny her but to try and focus. My mind felt muddled. I felt like there was no danger in answering her questions, but something inside me kept me from talking.
"My name is Silena," Silena didn't even hesitate to give the stranger her name. "But I can't tell you her name. She just told me not to tell her name to strangers."
My head seemed to clear for a moment as I processed Silena's response. She actually listened to what I said and didn't give away my name.
"Well, I'm sure it's fine. We're not strangers after all," Her Highness asked once again with more force this time. My eyes widened as I smelt the tiniest amount of magical energy coming from the woman's mouth. Within it, I smelled some divinity.
"You're a demigod too?" I finally managed to speak. Some of the fog in my mind cleared as I made the accusation.
Silena looked at me, probably not expecting me to have blurted out a question like that.
"How astute," Her Highness's warm smile grew slightly bigger, and her eyes sharper. "I to am a descendant of the divine. I noticed the signs of magic and decided to find its source."
Silena seemed to relax for a moment when she heard Her Highness wasn't a human.
"It was quite surprising to see its source be two young half-bloods," Her Highness brought her left hand to her chin. The nails of both her hands almost looked like talons. "When I saw that, I couldn't help myself. You see, the immigration process to enter your country was – how do you say it – expedited by my patron. Her son needs some help healing some eye damage. I had expected to have a few years to prepare, but now I have to quickly adjust. Fortunately, I found something that piqued my interest."
Her Highness's face seemed to glow as she said those last words. It sounded like genuine happiness, yet I felt something twisted behind it. "I love gathering useful things, helping people, and seeing their wants fulfilled for a reasonable price. American malls seem like the perfect place to do what I love. I've already found a place to open my own. All that is left is to see what the people of today want. You two, Silena and-"
"Atalanta," Silena suddenly spoke my name, seemingly happy as she did so.
I felt a swell of anger not at Silena but at Her Highness. She was clearly doing something to us, but I can't figure out what. At least she wasn't hostile…
No, that isn't right. Whatever Her Highness is doing is hostile, but I can't bring myself to do anything about it.
Her Highness's eyes seemed to glitter in recognition as if she was thinking about a happy memory. "Yes, thank you. The two of you are part of the demographic my store will cater to, so it would be wonderful to pick your brains and see what I'll need to prepare. Come, I'll even buy you lunch. I'm sure your both famished."
Suddenly, my stomach rumbled. It had been since this morning since I'd eaten, and it was probably close to one by now.
Silena agreed, and I suddenly found myself following behind.
We left the store with Her Highness, despite barely even being in there.
Her Highness asked Silena all sorts of questions as we walked to the food court. They talked about love potions, fashionable armor, equally fashionable weapons, shoes, and the like. On the outside, it seemed like they were talking about things this woman planned to sell. Both of them conversing amicably.
But it felt like a facade. Her Highness was getting information from Silena, but it was only what she wanted to hear from her. The dark-haired woman seemed to be leading Silena around by the nose.
She was using a child to reinforce her beliefs and validate that she was right.
I could say anything to Silena because I was trying to remember what I had forgotten. What was it?
The more I focused on it, the clearer it became… or at least what I was trying to remember.
As we reached the food court, a thought popped into my mind. What was Her Highness's name?
I felt like a lightbulb appeared in my head as I ran that question threw my head again.
It was so simple, yet I'd forgotten it. 'Her Highness' isn't this woman's birth name. She must have a real one, but what was it?"
Yes, I knew it, but I didn't. It seemed to be just out of reach.
I wrestled with this question while we got food. For some reason, Her Highness paid for it even though I said I would.
"Why did you get us food?" I asked the woman as we sat down with lunch.
"Isn't that obvious?" The black-dressed woman's voice seemed to be full of grace as it pasted her lips, but something about it bugged me. "I'm a saleswoman at heart; making deals are my bread and butter. If I'm going to get information from you two, it's only fair I give you something equivalent in turn."
It felt like Her highness thought she was doing us a favor by getting us food, even though I'm sure she was messing with our minds.
I need to get more information on her if I'm going to figure out or remember her name. "What kind of sales has a princess like you made anyway?"
That's right, she was a princess. I'd forgotten until that detail thoughtlessly slipped out.
A princess who makes deals. And if she's really doing something to block my ability to identify her, she must be someone I've heard of.
"I've made all kinds of deals in my life, though I was once more naïve in making them," the princess seemed to be thinking back on something. Her expression was a mixture of anger, nostalgia, and the slightest bit of what I think might be sadness.
It bit at my heart. I could only imagine what she was thinking about.
"I see. If you're going to make a deal with someone, it's good to be upfront and honest but not naïve. Naivety is a good way to end up being used by someone else," I said while thinking back on my past. My future self was naïve in making a deal with the counterforce and ended up eternally damned for it.
I looked over at Silena, who seemed alright. She was eating quickly and was already halfway done.
"How true," Her Highness agreed with a sour expression. "When I was still a naïve young princess, I made the biggest deal of my life, just for my partner to betray me in the end."
"What? That sounds horrible," Silena muttered. "If you make a deal with someone, you should see it through."
"That's quite right," the supposed princess said as she turned to glare at Silena. For a moment, I thought I sensed a little bit of anger suddenly directed at Silena. "The terms of the deal weren't even that difficult. All he had to do was give me his love, and I would fulfill his every dream."
"Huh?" Silena was audibly confused by the terms of Her Highness's deal. "Love isn't something you can give through a deal or something. It's an emotion that comes naturally. You can't force someone else to love you."
"Love comes naturally? It can't be forced on someone else? Both those ideas are foolish. My love for that man wasn't my own, but it was forced upon me by his request. Isn't it right he takes responsibility for his actions?" Once again, I felt the tiniest bit of magical energy from her words.
"If someone else forces you to love them, you should leave them. They clearly don't love you if they can do something like that to you," Silena countered despite having gone along with the woman's words up till now.
"That's easier said than done. If you truly love someone, can you just leave them? Or will your heart hold you hostage until it's broken?"
"I don't know," Silena said, looking down at the ground.
"Well, if you don't know, then how can you talk with such certainty?" The dark-haired woman asked with smug confidence. Her cold eyes seemed to take inordinate pleasure in seeing Silena struggle to answer. "Oh, it looks like you're almost done with your food. Why don't you go throw away your plate and sit somewhere else? You could use this time to think of an answer."
Seeing an adult bullying a child annoyed me. This woman was trying to ask questions about things Silena couldn't understand and seemed happy when she couldn't answer.
How could any sane adult ask an elementary school student about abusive relationships and what they would do if they were in one? And then get smug when the student didn't know what to say?
The woman didn't even give Silena a chance to gain her bearings or a second chance. She was trying to send Silena away instead, leaving her to just think about the question all alone.
I looked over at Silena and felt a pang of guilt as she stood up from the table. For some reason, she suddenly looked scared and worried.
I almost said something to her… I wanted to, but I didn't want Silena to be near this woman any longer. I can talk to Silena after I get Her Highness to leave.
My gaze switched from the leaving Silena to the foreign woman.
Just who is she?
She is someone that seems to have it out for Silena. The only reason I can think of for her to have something against Silena specifically is Beauregard being a child of Aphrodite.
She is supposedly the princess of… of… someplace that I just can't quite remember.
It also sounds like she was forced to love someone and made a deal with them. Then said deal ended in tragedy.
And they sort of remind me of someone.
As I looked at the evil-looking woman's vicious smile, a name started to come to mind.
All the fog in my mind seemed to fade at once as a memory of a similar smile resurfaced. It was one of a man that I fought in my past life. The one who wielded the caster-class card.
A chill ran down my entire body as the name of the caster servant came to mind.
Medea, the Witch of Betrayal.
"Excellent," the woman I believe to somehow be Medea said with what sounded like genuine praise. "It's rare to find someone capable of resisting my charmspeak, much less overcome it. But it should be expected of a person of your bloodline."
I looked at the woman for what felt like the first time. "You're Medea, aren't you?"
"Yes, though I do admit I'm surprised you figured it out so quickly," Medea confirmed my suspicions.
For a moment, I wished to be anywhere other than here.
Across all of human history, Medea is among the top five magic users to ever live. Her power is so great that the doll that tried to use her card was overcome by her personality and became convinced he was her.
Every one of Medea's spells that the doll used was enough to potentially kill me in my old body. That was only with a fraction of the real Medea's power. It wouldn't be wrong to say that this woman could kill me without even getting up from her seat.
"If you hadn't messed with my mind earlier, I would have figured out your identity sooner. It isn't that difficult. There is only one princess from Colchis with the power to survive for millenniums," I answered truthfully.
Medea was said to be able to return a person's youth and was capable of doing just about any magecraft. If this is a world where the Age of the Gods never ended, then it would make sense that powerful sorcerers like her could survive as well.
"Hm, you think my power is that great," Medea relished in being told she was great. "It seems you are more perceptive than the original Atalante. She was a fool that never understood my immense power and ability. She looked down on me as a barbarian for being from Colchis, just like all the other Argonauts."
I thought about my next words carefully. Medea is someone I can't make angry no matter what.
Luckily, Medea took my moment of silence as a cue to continue talking.
"Do you know what happened to the original Atalante?" She eagerly asked me.
"She lost a race to a guy named Hippomenes and had to marry him. They tried to have sex in one of Zeus's temples afterward. As punishment, the pair were turned into lions," I answered.
"Yes, you skipped Aphrodite helping Hippomenes and how she filled them with lust to have sex in Zeus's temple, but you're correct," I felt like Medea was getting some kind of strange pleasure out of the story. "The one who mocked and called me a barbarian became a monster. I still remember how saddened I was to hear the news. Atalante was the only other woman on the Argo's, after all. To see her become a lion that killed humans and unable to rest in Hades was too tragic."
Medea's words sounded genuinely sad. If I didn't know better, I would have thought she really did mourn the fate of her shipmate.
It was disgusting. Even if the original Atalante was cruel to Medea, taking pleasure in her suffering is horrible. Worse yet, she pretended like she cared.
A fake smile may be disgusting, but fake tears are worse.
"Atalante can't rest in Hades?" I asked Medea while hiding my feelings.
Medea's dark green eyes seemed to be able to pierce right through my attempt. "Yes, my dear, Atalante's soul will never return to Hades. She was cursed to lose her humanity and even ate the hunters who went after her. The destination of such a pitiable soul isn't the underworld but Tartarus. The swift huntress has become a monster no different than the Gorgons. Another victim to the gods, though I'm not sure which. Zeus may have cursed them, but Aphrodite was controlling their hearts, and your mother abandoned Atalante."
Once again, I felt a chill run down my back.
Earlier, she said something about my bloodline, and now she mentioned my mother.
"My mother? How do you know who she is?" I asked with a frown.
"I'm a seer. I know many secrets I shouldn't," the woman leaned forward in her seat. "But let's not dwell on them, shall we? Our current topic is way too much fun. Tell me, don't you think your mother holds some fault for abandoning her follower?"
It was this again. Medea is trying to get a rise out of me, and she's using my relationship with Mom to do it. I wonder if she and Aphrodite use the same playbook or something.
Probably not. Aphrodite didn't try to use charmspeak to brainwash me and didn't seem to wanna get a rise out of me specifically. Whatever she wanted seemed to do more with Mom – I was just collateral damage.
"Mom probably should've done something to protect her," I admitted.
I love my mother despite her faults and mistakes. Failing to do anything for the original Atalante is definitely a mistake.
The ones responsible for Atalante being turned into a lion were Aphrodite and Zeus. The former gave Hippomenes the golden apples that let him win Atalante's hand in marriage and then sent them into a lust-filled fury.
After feeling Mom's defiled temple, I could understand if a god similar to her accidentally cursed the married couple in rage. They probably wouldn't know about Aphrodite's meddling. But Zeus has no right to curse people for having sex in his temple.
I mean, his temple was probably already dirty, given his reputation.
Medea didn't look satisfied with my answer. She didn't look angry for say, but I felt the fake warmness she tried to put up fade ever so slightly. "I wonder then, why did she name you after someone she didn't care enough to save? Was it on a whim or out of some lingering affection?"
My name?
I couldn't help but look down at the table. A little bit of curiosity wormed its way into my head.
It's surprising to see her name me after someone who'd been dead for thousands of years. Especially since she used it as my first name and not my middle name.
My middle name is Zoë. The original Zoë was Mom's lieutenant and second in command before her death. It sounded like there was no one closer to my mother than her.
You would think that would be my first name, not my middle one.
Maybe I should ask Mom about the original Atalante when I get back home.
"It may also have been guilt," Medea added after a brief moment of silence. "She has so many many things to feel guilty for. I can't help but wonder if her daughter is the same."
My eyes shot back up towards Medea. I instinctively looked into the Witch of Colchis's eyes.
Suddenly, I felt like a mouse caught in the claw of a black cat that was toying with her food.
"Such a quick response," Medea spoke as she leaned forward. "Only someone with a guilty conscience would react that fast. But what else can you expect from a hero? What are your crimes? Murder? Thief? Lying? Backstabbing? J-walking?"
Medea proceeded to slowly list out a series of crimes. Once she found a crime she thought I had committed, she repeatedly asked it with different wording. She knew that I had no choice but to sit there and take it.
She pushed my buttons without even knowing what they were.
Each time she listed out a crime I committed, I could feel memories bubbling up from the back of my mind. The dark doubts plaguing me since my last life intruded into my thoughts.
The feeling that I made the wrong decisions.
I failed all of them.
It would have been better if I was never saved.
I shouldn't have been born.
"Fufufu," Medea let out an evil chuckle. "My, you are indeed a hero. I was once a victim of a hero, the experience of having my dreams shattered taught me to never trust your kind. I wonder how many people will learn that same lesson from you? Though, I wonder if there's something else you're hiding."
The Witch of Betrayal took pleasure in my guilt, even as I tried to hide it. I don't know what her next move is, but it wouldn't be good. A part of me felt like this woman was better at manipulating people than even Aphrodite.
"My powers as a seer let me foresee all manners of things, but it's not omnipotent. I see visions of the future, but my understanding of them is limited by my own knowledge, and they are not always complete. For example, I foresaw you but not your name or true nature," Medea sounded frustrated.
Even if I didn't understand what she was saying, I felt a bit of relief in hearing her frustration.
"So, you knew we would meet today?" I asked her.
"You misunderstand me. Today's meeting was just as much of a surprise for me as it was for you. What I saw was Artemis birthing a child with a foreign existence."
"What?!" I exclaimed while my body almost tensed.
She must've had this vision years ago if it was of me being born. But does that mean she knows I'm not originally from this world?
"Do you not know?" Medea's frustration faded as she found another way to toy with me. I couldn't tell if she really thought I didn't know about my 'foreign existence' or not. "Then let me explain."
The woman smiled before beginning her explanation. "Souls are a pesky thing, even I don't fully understand. In my vision, I saw that Artemis would bear a child with a soul of a foreign world. One that traveled to this world from another place and was protected by a strange energy."
So, she really did know that my soul was from another world. Luckily, it looks like she doesn't know everything about me. I need to figure out what she knows.
I also noted the part about strange energy. Does it have something to do with how I remembered my past life?
"Does it really matter if my soul isn't from this world or not?" I questioned Medea. The less information I give her, the better, but she can probably see through any lie. The best I can do is stay neither confirm nor deny knowing anything.
"Well, it really depends on what your soul was, doesn't it? Couldn't this unknown soul be an invader from another existence? Who knows what damage it could cause. In the eyes of the world, wouldn't it be safer to eliminate this unidentifiable existence before it's born?"
I don't think Alaya or Gaia would waste energy trying to kill someone who they didn't know was a threat. From the knowledge I gained from EMIYA, those two forces only work in the direst of circumstances.
They would only work to prevent something from being born if they know its existence is dangerous to mankind or the world.
"Isn't that pointless to think about? You're talking about things from the past."
"True," Medea agreed. "In fact, it's almost disappointing how little of a threat you are. When I foresaw a soul appearing that came from somewhere else and could survive the journey to this world without being wiped clean or destroyed… My interest was piqued."
Medea sounded bored and disappointed as she spoke.
"Yet, I can't find anything different about you. All you are is a normal half-blood," Medea spoke before reaching out her hand. A phone suddenly appeared out of nowhere and fell into her hand.
"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint," I sarcastically responded.
"I'm sure you are, though I believe you must be quite relieved," Medea said as she was checking something on her phone. "What point is there in killing just one average demigod? If your soul had been a threat to the world, you would've spent your entire life being personally targeted. Instead, you just have to survive the normal dangers to demigoddess. Unless someone is feeling particularly vindictive."
Medea's phone suddenly disappeared, and she stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere to be. There are some obstacles I need to remove before I can file the copyright for my mall's name."
She was leaving. I suddenly felt nearly indescribable relief.
A part of me wanted to let her go without saying anything, but a more stubborn part of me wanted to know why she chose to bother Silena and me.
"Why did you talk to us?" I asked Medea.
Medea looked down at me before answering. "My dear, didn't I tell you earlier? I saw you two and thought it would be prudent to converse. That was all there was to it. You should be glad no one's asked me to eliminate you, or I would have killed you."
So, she psychologically toyed with Silena and me on a whim! And she had the gall to act like she was doing us a favor by not killing us?!
I felt burning anger at this witch and myself for not being able to do anything about her.
"If you happen to stumble upon my mall, I would love to do business," Medea said as she walked away. Her tone almost made it seem like I should be grateful. A graceful laugh echoed in my ears. "Oh, how much I love helping your kind."
As if I would ever work with this psycho. Based on how she acts, Medea would find a way to hurt anyone who'd make a deal with them.
The information I had on her from the archer card made her seem completely different.
The Medea known to EMIYA was undoubtedly a twisted person, but they weren't needlessly malicious. She was someone who would do anything for her goal but not an inch beyond that.
This one seemed to embody her legend as a betrayer and schemer. A person that took pleasure in bringing harm to others. The fact that her usual smile reminded me of the one belonging to the insane caster card user says enough about her.
I hope the other legendary figures I know of don't end up being as one-sidedly evil as she was.
I got up from the table – picking up all the trash and throwing it away as I did so – and looked for Silena.
It didn't take long for me to find her sitting alone in one corner of the food court, tucked away from most visitors' sight.
Silena was sitting in the booth seat. Her expression was a dazed mixture of confusion and fear.
"Silena," I call out to her while sitting next to her.
"Huh, Ata, where's Her Highness?" Silena hesitantly asked.
A bitter feeling made itself known as I thought about how to answer Silena.
When I was trying to break Medea's charmspeak, it became easier once I realized who she was and what she was doing. So, it must be a good place to start.
"Silena, that woman's name was Medea, and she was using charmspeak us on," I explained to her. "Think about what she said to us and how you felt about it."
"Charmspeak?" Silena said as if she was trying to think of something. Her eyes slowly widened, and she became lost in thought. "Is that why we left… then went… And I said something you told me not to..."
Everything seemed to click into place at once for Silena. "Ata…"
"Are you ok?" I interrupted her.
"Yeah, I'm just…" she spoke while shivering. "Is that what charmspeak feels like?"
"What did it feel like to you?" I asked her with a frown. The two of us seemed to have experienced Medea's charmspeak differently, so I don't know how it felt to her.
"At first, I felt like talking with her and agreeing with her. She seemed so nice. Then she asked your name, and I remember you told me not to tell it to strangers. After that, I suddenly felt like I could trust her with anything."
I thought back to the earlier parts of our meeting with Medea. There was a moment when Silena didn't say my name, and then the witch tried to use charmspeak to get it out of her. When I realized Medea wasn't human and she confirmed it, I thought Silena lowered her guard.
For a brief moment, Silena's defenses lowered because she thought Medea was like us. The Witch of Betrayal saw that as an opportunity and used it to take control of Beauregard's mind.
"I'm sorry, Ata," Silena apologized while looking down at the table. "Her voice sounded so beautiful. It made me want to do whatever she asked of me."
"This is one of the rare times you don't have anything to apologize for," I said calmly. "That woman was more dangerous than you can imagine. She even managed to affect me with her voice. You didn't have a chance of resisting."
I was the one who should apologize. Medea used a moment I gave her to take control of Silena, and I know anyone would have fallen for it. The Witch of Betrayal took advantage of the moment when Silena's mind switched her from an ordinary person to someone she could discuss the world of magic with. Even I would've been taken in by Medea if I didn't have my resistance to charmspeak.
That's why I should be the one apologizing. My resistance to charmspeak was greater, and I had more training in controlling myself. Yet, I only broke free because of my anger at how she treated Silena and knowing her from my past.
It was humiliating and unforgivable.
"How's there someone so scary wandering around?" Silena muttered weakly. "She made me feel like I was trapped in my mind."
"Trapped in your mind?" I repeated. My mind may have felt hazy and clouded, but it wasn't like I was trapped in it.
"Didn't you feel that way? When we were eating and talking about love… I knew what she was saying was wrong, but it was hard to disagree with her. Once I did, a part of me suddenly realized something wasn't right, and she was doing something to us. I couldn't say anything; she was too perfect. I felt like I couldn't do anything…."
I attentively listened to Silena's every word.
Our two experiences with Medea's charmspeak were fundamentally different.
There were moments when I saw something pleasant in Medea, but it was fleeting. My mind always noticed something wrong with her, such as her cold eyes or vicious smile.
My experience was closer to that woman Silena tried to charmspeak earlier.
Meanwhile, Silena was mentally brainwashed into thinking of Medea as beautiful and perfect. Her every word was something she had to follow. By the time she realized something was wrong, Beauregard couldn't break free.
No wonder she looked scared.
What do I say in a situation like this?
I thought back to everything that happened to Silena on this quest. The same thing happened over and over again. She would face something she wasn't ready for and be terrified. Despite that, she had the mental fortitude to endure it. What she lacked was…
"That's because there was nothing you could do. Sometimes you'll encounter something you can't do anything about. When that happens, you need to focus on surviving. Keeping your life intact is more important than anything else. If you do that, you'll eventually grow strong enough to stand up for yourself," I offered some advice that I knew was hypocritical.
"Really?" Silena sounded surprised. She seemed to forget her fears for a moment. "You didn't care about your life when you fought the snake monsters."
"Camp Half-Blood is supposed to help demigods train and grow stronger. Why don't you use our time there to grow stronger enough to protect yourself?" I asked.
Silena frowned at my clear avoidance of her remark. "Is that possible? For me to protect myself?"
"Yes, I'm sure you can with enough effort," I answered.
I don't know much about the camp, but it should be a good place to train. It's at least good enough for me to be sent there next summer. That's practically a sign of approval from Mom.
"Ok, I'll believe you. I want to be strong enough to fight beside you in the future," Silena said after a few moments. She gathered herself as she spoke, hardening herself for the future.
I nodded. Silena's response was one I'd expect from someone like her. Someone who couldn't even think about fighting alone.
"Do you want to keep looking around or leave?" I asked her after a moment.
After running into Medea, I don't think we'll run into anything else. Even my luck isn't that bad. Medea also said that she was leaving, so it should be fine if we went back to shopping.
Doing so would be good for Silena after what had happened, but I wanted her to make the choice.
"Do you think we can get on a bus if we leave right now?" Silena looked down and played with her hands.
"I guess if there is a bus going home, but isn't there some more stuff you wanted to look at?"
"I'm good. I want to get home before something terrifying happens again," Silena admitted.
"I understand," we've had several terrible encounters with monsters; wanting to go home was normal. "Let's go."
"Yeah," Silena spoke with a smile and eyes as warm as the sun.
Silena and I got out of the booth. The ambient sounds of the mall filled my ears as we did so.
It was finally time to go home.
Medea of Colchis:
Strength: C Endurance: C Agility: B Mana: A+ Luck: E
The daughter of the Nymph Eidyia and King Aeetes of Colchis. She is the granddaughter of the Sun Titan Helios. Medea is the strongest priestess of Hecate, the goddess of magic.
Fittingly, she is among the greatest magic-users to ever exist, possessing more magical energy than even some gods. For comparison, her magical energy is multiple times stronger than that of the caster card user and Atalanta.
The Witch of Colchis is poor at physical encounters and straight-up combat but is a master of plotting and scheming. Medea's low-ranking luck is due to the bad karma she has brought upon herself.
Skills:
Divinity (Helios) D+:
She possesses a low level of divinity due to being a legacy of Helios.
Magic A:
She is one of the greatest mortal magic users to ever exist across the entire world. Unlike Atalanta, she doesn't have to use her magic circuits, directly manipulating the magical energy in her surroundings instead. This technique is common among Greek spellcasters and is the direct opposite of the Egyptian magician, that directly manipulates their internal energy to cast spells.
Medea is capable of using any magic she's seen before and is skilled enough to make countless spells of her own. Her abilities allow her to enact spells that arguably rival the abilities of magic gods.
Her charmspeak is artificially done through magic taught to her by Circe, resulting in trace amounts of magical energy when she puts more effort into it. And while it may be more potent than some children of Aphrodite, it is still weaker than those who master their talent.
It is said she was capable of summoning the moon goddess Selene and making her fall in love with a mortal.
Item Creation A:
Medea is a true genius when it comes to making magical objects. With time and resources, there is nothing she can't make.
The Witch of Betrayal holds the greatest interest in poisons and potions. Medea relies on these far more than the version of herself from Atalanta's original timeline. This is due to her lacking the direct combat prowess of her counterpart.
Relationships:
Circe: The two get along well, but Medea wouldn't hesitate to betray her aunt if it suited her goals.
Jason: She despises her former husband and anyone who shares his name. The Princess of Colchis claims he murdered her brother and believes their children were killed by an unruly mob Jason failed to protect them from. It isn't known if this is true, but Medea truly believes everything that went wrong in her life was Jason's fault.
Atalante: The only other female Argonaut that sailed with Medea. The two didn't get along because Atalante mocked Medea's heritage and love for Jason. Medea, in turn, mocked Atalante's animalistic nature and desire to remain single. Strangely, despite finding joy in Atalante's undignified fate, Medea developed a respect for her shipmate after Jason's betrayal. The fallen princess even wished she had listened to Atalante's object to her marriage with Jason instead of ignoring them.
Aphrodite: The goddess of love that enchanted Medea into loving Jason at the behest of Hera. The formerly bewitched princess despises the Olympian but can't direct her hatred or vengeance at Aphrodite because she is a goddess. Hence, she enjoys taking it out on the goddess of love's children.
Helios: Despite being Grandfather and Granddaughter, Medea doesn't care about the faded Titan. Said Titan once loved his granddaughter, but he has now faded into the deepest depths of Tartarus.
Iskandar: Not the conqueror, but The Chief Lector of the House of Life. He is a magician over two millennia old and is currently the strongest of his kind in the world. The man is so powerful that even Medea knows of him from visions she received while in the Fields of Punishment. The greatest greek sorceress doesn't even attempt to interact with magicians for fear she'll draw the attention of the House of Life's leader.
Atalanta: Medea despises Artemis's child as she would any other hero. Despite her actions and words, Medea actually holds a special interest in Atalanta for two reasons. The first is that she actually sensed something different about Atalanta's magical energy, feeling like it was passively eroding the world and replacing it with a different set of laws. The second is the darkness Medea saw within Atalanta. The Witch's self-centeredness caused her to link the darkness to her own, something that makes the ancient woman want to break the child of Artemis until they become the same.
Hello.
This chapter is smaller than it originally was because I decided to split the encounter with Medea and resolution into two chapters. The reason is that I'm having too much fun playing Fire Emblem: Three hopes to finish the chapter, which would have to be super long to cover both things.
Good news: the next chapter is already at 4.5K. It will probably be way longer than normal chapters, given everything it needs to cover, but it'll work.
On Medea:
If anyone from the Fate side – or hasn't read the 7HoO in a while – thinks I'm like bashing Medea by making her too evil. I'm not. PJ!Medea is this evil and lacking in good traits. In 'The Lost Hero,' Piper describes Medea as one of the evilest villains in greek mythology. Literally, nobody likes her, and she basically goes around kicking puppies.
So, just know that everything she said could be a lie meant to manipulate our heroes and should be taken with a grain of salt. (Also, that erode reality bit in Medea's profile refers to Atalanta's reality marble, nothing else.)
Though, some of her other words might super important.
Oh, and Gaia = nasuverse world consciousness. Gaea = Percy Jackson Greek Primordial goddess.
Hints for the next chapter:
1) What would happen if Artemis is distracted by the bad sacrifice from the last chapter? And what was she still doing when it happened.
2) Artemis doesn't want Ata to use projection because it came from her past life. How will the harsher Diana react to Ata wearing proof she was using it?
Reviews:
Everyone on omakes and size: I'm sorry for making them too long. Since some people like them and others feel they're too long, I'll only post them very rarely when there are chapters where very little happens, or I have to announce something. I'll just write them when my mind wanders to them and keep them in a separate document until then. I probably flat out wouldn't write any more of them for at least a year or two.
I was asked to include character sheets, though, so I hope that's fine. They make it easier to give information that couldn't be given in the chapter and help people keep track of stuff. I'll post at most one chapter, and only for major characters. (I will have to backtrack for a few already introduced characters, though.)
Some of these responses were given in PM, but I'm going to include shortened versions here in case other people had similar questions or thoughts:
ThatIdioticMelody: Yeah, most people spilling her thoughts like Silena wouldn't make sense, but I feel like it fits with Silena specifically because she's so young and wants to open up to Atalanta. And there have already been hints to Ata's UBW.
Merendinomiliano: Thanks!
Sniperassin0: I'm happy to hear you like this fic!
Maglad: I was stupid and put the benches inside the pavilion instead of outside like I originally imagined. Didn't think about how they could be used as a stool after that.
RanAnka: Welcome! Thanks for reading!
Crash 0537: It's nice to see people excited for an update!
Victor Janus: I don't think Atalanta is holding the idiot ball for not apologizing to the other party. Not only would that probably not do much, but it would be out of character. Making a suboptimal decision makes sense if it is in character. Not everyone is a machine that makes the best optimal choice.
From the perspective of 'Shirou Emiya,' she wouldn't stand for bullies or people threatening those close to them. From the perspective of 'Atalanta,' she was injured in a place that felt repulsive to her and was watching a young girl gets threatened by a grown man.
Neither of those PoV is conducive to deciding to cower in front of the person threatening her or her friends. If anything, her response was muted given the fact that young 'Shirou Emiya' conically got beat up in fights protecting young girls from bullies.
Like if they had been more civil and less constantly hostile with them, Atalanta would've gotten Silena to apologize, but they weren't.
I tried to use this chapter to make it clearer that Atalanta was angry about how Silena was treated. While Silena did something wrong, Ata felt that the other family (or two of them) were also in the wrong for being so hostile.
Exiled Soul Nomad: And is unsinkable as the Titanic.
Seneth God: Your review is just 'my.' It might not have all been sent.
Light Hero Kaiser: Thanks! Hopefully, this chapter didn't keep you waiting too long.
Osterreicher97: Camp Jupiter isn't as wonderful as the narration has you believe. Hazel in 'Son of Neptune' says the city part only has two to three hundred people. She also says that most demigods leave the city after their service is up. Starting positions can be changed based on letters of recommendation supporting nepotism. (No surprise to anyone, we learn this from Octavian.) Plus, in 'Blood of Olympius,' we learn of a legacy named Bryce, who got away with murdering his centurion because his family was rich and influential. His only punishment was that he had to leave Camp Jupiter, something which most people did anyway.
Um, I'm going to come back and do the guest reviews later, but thank you all for leaving reviews!
Now, I'm going to go back to playing Three Hopes.
Have a great day, everyone!