demented-dreamer wondered if the story was all made up - well there's a short myth about Poesidon's chase of Nereus' daughter Amphitritie, whom he wanted to marry, and it is upon that skeleton I have added some flesh.
Then I have had the satyrs speaking some kind of adapted ghetto-lingo, I sort of thought it fitting.
Part 3 - Seek
When talking to Xantousa Poseidon had felt an odd, tingling sensation in the back of his neck, like he was being watched. It was annoying even if it wasn't any secrets they had been discussing - after all half the world knew that he wanted that daughter of Nereus and was investing both time, energy and money in trying to locate her.
So after talking to Hippos, the Stallion Governor, Poseidon sighted the room, looked for disturbances in the spiritual continuum. And sure, it was something there, someone had been listening in on him. The Sea God concentrated, pulled at that little disturbance, unfolding the anomaly - it had been her!
It had been Amphitrite watching and listening to him! That she had found him was no surprise, he was after all at home in his palace, but how many times had she done that earlier, when he had been too tired or too stressed to notice? That was probably one of the reasons why he had been unable to find her, Poseidon thought. And now she was probably warned about the horse plan.
Thinking over the situation for the umpteenth time he settled down on a couch and poured himself some wine. He had really goofed up that night at Olympos last year. Sure, he had failed to catch girls earlier, but he had managed to shrug and move on, and for one turning him down there were always three others willing to play. But with young Amphitrite, daughter of his old buddy Nereus, it had been completely different. Poseidon had been totally enthralled by this golden-haired youth.
It had been her soft, elegant and slightly sexy way of dancing and her way of looking at him during the dance; like she wanted to record every tiny bit of his face, collecting him like he was a rare shell. Oh - he knew the way of nymphs, naiads and Nerieds. They were harvesting men and putting them in their collections, comparing with their friends and sisters, boasting. But this had been nothing like that. Amphitrite had been appreciating him for the man he was, not for the god he was. She had seen him - not the God of the Sea.
Then her cute way of trying to hide her nervousness on the way to the bar, and her distrust in the trendy drink. Poseidon had found himself totally and irreversibly enchanted by Amphitrite. He had fallen in love and been so scared of loosing her that he went ahead and managed to do exactly that. Clumsy - not his style at all. He though he had her when she cracked that joke about Troisen, but then she ran away upon the arrival of Athena.
Poseidon sighed deeply at the thought of his niece. It was far from the first time that little bitch had disrupted his plans. She had a way of always showing up at the most inconvenient times and trashing his plans. If he had just gotten five more minutes with Amphitrite. Five minutes! Then she would have been here with him now instead of on the run somewhere and making him feel both guilty and heartbroken.
It was time for him to take extreme measures. Forgetting Amphitrite? That was out of the question. He had to have her! He couldn't live without that girl! But she was hiding on dry land where none of his sea subjects were able to find her. Sure, they had located her now and then but she had always been on the move, and before he got the chance to come and catch her she had been gone.
Poseidon realised that he had to have help from the land deities to find his beloved. And for that he would have to offer some kind of reward. Something fancy so people would fall all over themselves in their tries to locate the daughter of Nereus. And he had just the right thing.
The king-clams were almost extinct because those ugly monster-fishes were vacuuming the bottom of the sea for their favourite dish. But some years ago Poseidon had found one old bastard on his swims. A clam hiding beneath a rock. Poseidon couldn't remember why he had chosen to look at that very spot, but there he had been, old papa clam. And what a pearl he had kept within his shell! Big as one of Poseidon's own thumbnails and with that perfect colour of purple that made them so valuable. Purple with swirls of a darker pattern, and not an erroneous spot.
Now the pearl rested in Poseidon's vault, perhaps it was crazy letting such a valuable item go, but in the vault it wasn't making anyone happy, and Poseidon would gladly have traded a dozen of these pearls if he could only have the wonderful Amphitrite.
ooo
The pearl sure triggered an interest among the dry land deities. Even Olympians wanted it and were running Poseidon's errands looking for Amphitrite. Ares kept organising search parties - the idiot using werewolves which sure was going to scare the Neried even deeper into hiding and Dionysos kept contacting him each and every day having seen the girl somewhere or another, usually slurring so much that he hardly made sense.
Then there were all the prank calls, which Poseidon had to redirect to his mermaids. Xantousa had been irritated of course.
- With all due respect, my Lord, but I'm your project manager, not some secretary. I'm not going to sit and talk to nymphs who has as much brains as herrings.
- But have there been any serious sightings?
- Yes, one. A centaur. No, I mean a satyr. He saw her together with Euandros, son of Hermes, moving westwards. They were in Trace when spotted.
- Satyrs? They are as reliable as sharks, Poseidon grumbled.
- But every detail fitted, Xantousa said. The time-span between leaving the Themiscyra county, where she sold that horse and reaching eastern Trace; the way she looked, complete with that Hephestos-made sword. Not to mention Euandros helping her. He has always been...
- Eager to trade and make money. Just like his father. Poseidon smiled. A plan was starting to form in his mind. Xantousa, dear, sorry for being harsh on you earlier, but you're simply invaluable to me. Expect a bonus at the end of this month!
-Thank you my Lord.
- Now I don't want to be disturbed anymore tonight if it's not a dire emergency. I have some important work to do.
ooo
Trace was mountainous and barren and one of the places Poseidon disliked the most. Not because of the landscape, he wasn't really found of any of the dry land areas, but mountains could pass, at least there were falls, brooks and lakes to enjoy. But it was the people Poseidon couldn't stand. Brute warriors all of them, mostly worshipping Ares or Zeus, the women turning their hearts to Artemis.
And he disliked the idea of having to deal with satyrs. He'd rather seen the king-clam pearl in the hand of a town god or a bridge deity. Someone who could appreciate it as the beautiful item it was. Not those lazy, unreliable and sloppy creatures who above everything smelled like the goats they bore resemblance to. They were probably just going to trade the pearl for more booze, and it would end up with Dionysos one way or another.
Finding the right satyr wasn't easy either, they all looked more or less the same to him, Poseidon thought. But he came disguised as a mere mountain god, his trident turned into a walking staff; and he kept asking for Herkynos, until a red-furred fatto stopped chewing upon his chicken drumstick for a blink of an eye and pointed with his oily thumb in a general backwards direction.
- 'S in da caves. Pouting. Nymph ran off.
- Old ugly Herkynos! The satyr next to the fat one exclaimed and they all bursted out in laughter.
- Sure ya don't wanna siddown a sec', homeboy? Have some wine, another of the beasts offered and waved a skin sack with something liquid in, a grin of big and yellow teeth.
- No, I have business with Herkynos, Poseidon declined and left the party.
- Come back later then, the fat satyr called after him. Herkynos is a bore, just thinkin' of makin' da buck. Ya can have much more fun in our company. An' da nymphs are coming later.
- Good for you, the Sea God returned absentmindedly and walked over to the cavities to find Herkynos.
ooo
The fatto's friend had been right, Herkynos sure was an ugly thing even for being a satyr. Small and bent, with warty cheeks and a strawberry-like nose that seemed to take up half the face. Beneath a dirty fringe two tiny and greedy eyes were looking upon the Sea God with suspicion.
- Shomme da pearl, was the first thing he said.
- I don't have it with me, Poseidon lied.
- Shomme it, or I ain't gonna help ya. B'sides I only deal with Ole Fishy himself, Herkynos insisted, and the Sea God decided that he disliked this creature down to the bones.
- Now, listen fellow, he said, you want that pearl, right?
- U-hu, the satyr nodded, eyes showing even more greed.
- Then you do as I say! You deal with me, I work for Poseidon, run his errands. You show me the Neried and her companion and I give you the pearl in return.
- Shomme da pearl first! Herkynos repeated himself.
- You have hearing-problem, in spite of those big satyr's ears? You'll get the pearl after showing me the Neried. That's the deal. No Neried no pearl. Simple enough even for a satyr I reckon.
- Okay, Herkynos said with a thoughtful face. I'll show ya da chick. But then ya gimme da pearl or ya gonna be sorry, really freaky sorry if ya try to seddup Herkynos. Come on!
Poseidon followed the satyr down a narrow path that winded itself through ravines and across steep mountain walls. Goat paths, fitting for satyrs, he thought scornfully. Dark was falling, the moon and the stars were coming out and Poseidon blessed the night breeze that started to waft from behind him, relieving him of most of Herkynos' dreadful stench.
After a while they came to a shallow pit in the ground.
- Down there, Herkynos pointed with a bony finger.
Poseidon peered down in the pit, and surely by the wall sat two figures, a man and a woman in front of a sparkling campfire. They were talking quietly, not noticing the men watching them.
- Stay there, Poseidon ordered Herkynos and made a sweeping leap down in the pit, his cloak fluttering behind him. The couple by the campfire looked up, and Poseidon immediately recognised Euandros, the glib son of Hermes. The girl on the other hand was hiding behind a waterfall of blond hair.
- Euandros, the Sea God said, not bothering with politeness. I have been informed that you know the whereabouts of the Neried Amphitrite.
- That might be right and that might be wrong.
- Son of Hermes, being the one you are I bet you can see through my disguise if you concentrate. And I am not in the mood for idiot games. I'd rather make a deal with you. I'm sure you're familiar with the reward I'm offering in return for Amphitrite.
- Indeed I am, a king-clam's pearl. Large and purple and elegantly patterned.
- I expected so, you Hermides are usually well-informed. So are you interested?
- Depends.
- Depends on what? The pearl in return for Amphitrite, I thought that was simple enough.
- Ask her, Euandros nodded at his female companion who was sitting silently beside him. The blond woman pushed back her hair from her cute face. Definitely not Amphitrite. She sure was charming with these high cheek bones and that rosebud month, but she was far from the woman in Poseidon's dreams.
- I'm Ororethe, the nymph told. Poseidon gritted his teeth.
- Sorry if I interrupted something, he said and turned, cloak whirling.
- No, wait! the nymph called out. I'm as good as her. Take me with you instead! Within a week you'd forgotten all about Amphitrite. Poseidon didn't even bother answering when leaving.
- Da Pearl, master! Herkynos held out his bony hand.
- Forget it, Poseidon snorted. In return Herkynos suddenly pulled out a knife and yelled:
- Gimme da pearl or I cut out your guts and feed them to my dog.
Angered Poseidon shed his disguise standing in front of the satyr as the mighty God of the Sea.
- You witless creature! he thundered. Did you really think you could fool me, presenting me a mere nymph instead of my Neried? Poseidon struck his trident in the rocky ground between himself and the satyr. The earth shook and subsoil water broke through, fountaining high up in the air and soaking the scared Herkynos.
The satyr turned and ran away and Poseidon figured of throwing his trident, killing the punk; but then he thought the better of it. Rather let the satyr run and tell his friends to not mess with the Sea God.
- And at least he's going to be smelling quite a bit better for a couple of days, Poseidon said to his reflection in the newly formed pond.
- Now what? He turned, facing the shadow closing in from behind.
- Wanted to make sure it was you after all, the son of Hermes said. That was the reason for the little game in the pit.
- What do you want? Since I take it that you don't have Amphitrite.
- I know the value of a pearl like the one you have. Give me half of it in gold drachmae and I'll tell you where the Neried is right now. I cannot deliver her, that's true, that's why I am content with half the reward.
- You sure are a wheeler-dealer, Euandros.
- You want to know her whereabouts or not, Sea God?
- Would I have come so far in person if not? Now I'll give you 5000 gold drachmae. Where is she?
- Listen, you know that old titan...