Myths and MonstersA Limited Edition Anthology
Contents
Hannah Lynn
Athena’s Child
Russell Nohelty
Anna and the Dark Place
Tina Glasneck
Cursed by the Gods
Mary Kit Caelsto
Riding with Luck
C. A. King
Wendigo Forest
Majanka Verstraete
The Monsters of Pandora
Leslie Conzatti
The Water-Man
Raine English
Tears of Stone
Mara Amberly
The Oracle’s Guardian
Pauline Creeden writing as Paula Black
Water Warrior
Thank You for Reading!
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Myths and Monsters: A Limited Edition Anthology © 2020
Cover art by Taurus Colosseum
All rights reserved by the individual authors.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Titles and Authors in this Anthology
Athena’s Child
By Hannah Lynn
Anna and the Dark Place
By Russell Nohelty
Cursed by the Gods
By Tina Glasneck
Riding with Luck
By Mary Kit Caelsto
Wendigo Forest
By C. A. King
The Monsters of Pandora
By Majanka Verstraete
The Water-Man
By Leslie Conzatti
Tears of Stone
By Raine English
The Oracle’s Guardian
By Mara Amberly
Water Warrior
By Pauline Creeden writing as Paula Black
Athena’s Child
Hannah Lynn
Athena’s Child © 2020 Hannah Lynn
All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Prologue
Some believe that monsters are born monsters. That some creatures arrive on this Earth with a darkness so all-consuming in their heart that no mere mortal’s love could ever hope to tame it. These souls, they believe, cannot achieve redemption and do not deserve it. They are beasts, intent on causing chaos for all who cross their paths. They are vengeful and hate-filled, deserving of nothing except our contempt.
Perhaps it is true. Perhaps all monsters are born. Then again, perhaps it is just a way of hiding the darkness we all carry within us. A darkness we force ourselves to keep hidden from the world for we can barely imagine what terrible misdoings would occur if we were to let that darkness grow. Because the truth that we all know is this. Darkness grows.
It would be easier if it did not. This story, in many ways, would be easier if the darkness had been born in her that way. But it was not. She was not. Medusa grew from monsters, but she was not born of them.
Chapter 1
The three figures stood in the doorway, watching the flurries of dust bloom in the air. The silence that surrounded them was not an easy silence. It was a silence burdened with contemplation; of an unspoken question to which each one of them knew the answer, but none would be the first to say.
The green of spring had been lost to the heat of summer. Long shadows of Cypress trees marked out lines in the dry, powdery earth, and the smell of overripe fruit sweetened the air around them. Shrivelled berries littered the ground, making glorious feasts for the insects that scurried over the rocks and dirt. Despite the sun having already begun its descent, the evening air was still heavy with the day’s humidity. As the family stood, watching the horse and rider disappear over the horizon, sweat weaved its way down their brows and backs.
‘We should consider it,’ said the mother, Aretaphila. It was always going to be she who was the first to speak. Her words were blunt and void of emotion, as if the matter were nothing more than a transaction, a sale at the market which, of course, it was. To pretend it was more than that would be nothing short of foolish.
‘We should not. We will not.’ Thales’ eyes met his wife’s for the first time since their visitor’s departure.
‘We can’t keep delaying. We are fortunate. This is a good match.’
‘On what evidence do you make this claim?’ Thales’ voice hardened.
‘I do have some experience in these matters,’ Aretaphila replied.
The pair looked at the girl between them.
‘Go inside,’ Aretaphila said to her firstborn. ‘Find your sisters. Make sure they have not made a mess of their clothes. And there will be no need to worry about cooking tonight. We have more than enough from our guest to make do.’
Medusa’s eyes moved from the horizon. With a simple, elegant nod to her mother, she turned to go.
‘But take that thing off first.’ Her father motioned to the jewels wrapped around her neck. Medusa raised her hand and touched the necklace. Without so much as a word, she slipped the glimmering string of gemstones over her head and handed it to her father before disappearing inside.
The man on the horse had been the third visitor they had received in a month, and the wealthiest by far. He had brought with him baskets of figs, wine, olives, meat, and jewellery. The necklace was embedded with gold and more garnet than any of them had seen in their lifetime. Selling it would earn them more than their farm would in three years. Thales glanced down at the object and shuddered.
‘Aretaphila,’ he said, taking his wife’s hand in his. ‘What do we do? Do you believe what you say? That this is a good match?’
She nodded slowly. ‘I do. He was courteous. He has a good name. And intelligence. Not all have been blessed in such a way.’
‘Intelligence means shrewdness, cunning,’ Thales countered her. ‘He is double my age and then some. What interest could a man of that age find in a thirteen-year-old girl?’
His wife’s silence provided all
