Читать книгу Demeter’s Dream - Tony Thistlewood - Страница 11

My center is giving way, my right is pushed back, my left is wavering. The situation is excellent. I shall attack!

Marshall Ferdinand Jean Marie Foch:

French WWI Supreme Allied Commander.

I had to go and find him, of course. If Poseidon was on the mountain, I simply had to talk to him. I needed to find out what he was up to, and whose side he really was on.

I left KK to guard the girls because I was secretly afraid that the stories of Posey being on the mountain might be a ploy to separate me from Demeter and Persephone. Unfortunately, my search turned out to be a complete waste of time. Nobody I spoke to had laid eyes on him, or, if they had, they were keeping it to themselves. Fearing that it was a ploy after all, I raced back to the apartment.

The place was deserted, or so I thought until I saw KK lying in a dark corner. On a side table lay an opened, bright-red box of chocolates; only four had been eaten. I resisted the temptation.

‘Here, KK,’ I called out, clicking my fingers.

Unusually, there was no response from the giant dog. I walked over to him; he still didn’t stir. I was worried now. Normally, KK would have heard my footsteps, felt tiny vibrations of the floor caused by my body weight, or picked up my scent, yet he seemed to be in a very deep, hypnotic sleep. I bent down to pat him, and only then did I realize what was wrong: KK had been turned back into stone – or Candia Red Greek marble, to be precise. There were not too many gods or goddesses on the mountain who were capable, or even daring enough, to pull off such a stunt on my dog – the dog of the god of gods! I made a mental list of the possibilities.

If anything had happened to Demeter or Persephone, I would never forgive myself. Never! My revenge would be cataclysmic. And somebody, or some group, would discover to their cost just what the wrath of old Zeus could do.

I was fed up with talking; that was Demeter’s way. Mine was action.

I began to caress KK as I had done when I first arrived on Olympus and found him guarding the gates of the Pantheon. Under my touch, the marble slowly turned to gold. I continued caressing him until the gold slowly reverted to his natural golden colored fur, and the dog morphed back to life.

Most dogs in the mortal world have a sense of smell that, depending on the breed, can be between 10,000 to 100,000 times more sensitive than that of humans. For KK, you could multiply that by at least a factor of ten.

I walked him up and down the apartment to make sure he was fully recovered. He soon seemed perfectly normal. We stopped next to the table with the open box of chocolates. They looked so tempting. I reached for one and KK suddenly started barking furiously. I have rarely heard him so excited. I stroked his ears to calm him down. When KK was completely relaxed again, I stretched my arm towards the chocolates to see how he would react. KK went berserk. He threw his enormous frame at the table smashing it to smithereens and scattering the chocolates across the room. Nobody would want to eat them now, or so I thought.

‘Okay, KK, I get it; I get it,’ I said and fondled his ears again until he was calm.

‘Where are they, KK? Where are Demeter and Persephone?’

This time, KK went straight to the door. I waved it open and followed the dog outside. As usual, an MHP was waiting for us. Its doors silently slid open as we approached. KK stuck his nose inside, sniffed and backed away. I waved the MHP away, and it was immediately replaced by another. KK sniffed and backed away. This was repeated four more times before I realized the problem: all MHPs are automatically sanitized after every journey. Not even KK with his amazing senses could detect a scent that was no longer there. I was getting frustrated now and very, very angry. How dare they treat me like this on my mountain! Someone was going to pay and pay big time!

How badly I missed Demeter’s calming influence.

In front of us, an MHP was waiting with its doors open. I got in, and KK jumped in after me.

‘Take me to the Lady Athena,’ I said to the Pod.

There is no sensation of movement or speed in a Mobile Hermes Pod. The General Theory of Relativity is completely voided because there are no windows or clocks to compare time and space relatively; thus, there is no indication of the passing of time or distance. You get in; you go; you arrive. If you were to wear a mortal’s watch, it would stop until you arrived, and then start again. No point in looking at it.

Nothing is barred to me on Mount Olympus; I am the god of gods, which can be very useful. Thus, when the doors of the MHP opened, I was able to walk straight into Athena’s apartment. She was just coming out of her bedroom and initially seemed completely flustered by my presence, or maybe it was the sight of KK, or possibly because she was naked.

Athena, known as Minerva to the Romans, was every bit as beautiful as I remembered her. Indeed, she lacked nothing in comparison with Hera or even Aphrodite. In fact, many years ago, those three were responsible for the Trojan War. Well, it was really my fault in the first place, I suppose.

Just so you understand, it happened like this: A goddess called Eris, who was every bit as mischievous as the goddess Até, said she would give a golden apple to the one of the three – Hera, Athena, or Aphrodite – who was considered the most beautiful. Eris then asked me to be the judge. Well, what would you do? I mean, I was soon to be married to one, Hera, who hated Aphrodite because of that business with Hephaestus, while Athena was my daughter by – well, not Hera, so let us leave it at that. I could not possibly be the judge, could I? So, I appointed Paris, a mortal, to do the honors.

Unfortunately, Paris was a lascivious womanizer although, I must admit, he was no one’s fool. He inspected these three beauties and then declared that he could not make up his mind which one was the most beautiful because of the way they were dressed. To this little problem, Paris had a brilliantly simple, and peculiarly lascivious, solution: he asked them all to remove their clothes – every last stitch – which they all did without hesitation. Oh, dear, greed and ambition are such dangerous bedfellows, don’t you agree?

And yet, what a wondrous sight! Three of the most beautiful women in the immortal world, and the mortal world come to that, standing next to each other stark naked. Amazingly, or cunningly, Paris still dithered, and that is when these three gorgeous women attempted to bribe him. Hera offered to make him king of Asia and Europe. Athena promised him wisdom and invincibility in war, while Aphrodite offered him the most beautiful woman in the world: Helen of Troy, wife of the Greek king, Menelaus. No contest! Paris awarded Aphrodite the golden apple, took Helen, and thus began the Trojan War because the Greeks were royally jerked-off and badly wanted their Helen back.

The Trojan war lasted ten years and caused a major rift between us Olympian gods. Apollo, Artemis, Ares, and Aphrodite joined forces with the Trojans, while Hera and Athena, who both hated Paris for choosing Aphrodite over them, naturally aligned themselves with the Greeks as did Poseidon, Hermes, and Hephaestus. I, as supreme god of gods, tried to remain impartial although I did end up in bed with Hera, but that’s another story.

After Persephone, Athena was possibly my favorite daughter, yet, given our history, I was apprehensive as to how she would react to me. I needn’t have worried. As soon as she had gotten over her initial surprise and dressed in one of those flimsy short and delightfully revealing garments that the beauties of the mountain preferred, she raced over to me, her beautiful face all lit up, and flung her arms about me. I was glad she no longer wore that silly warrior’s helmet she was famous for, but which I has always found so unbecoming on such a beautiful woman.

‘Uncle Posey said you were sure to come and see me,’ she said eventually.

‘You have talked to Poseidon?’ I asked.

‘Oh, yes. He talked of you and Demeter in glowing terms and explained the enormous task you have set yourselves in the mortal world. Your plans sound most impressive and highly ambitious. And, I imagine, are not without considerable risk.’

‘You are so right there. Did Posey say why he is here?’ I asked.

‘Yes. He said he was worried about you and thought that you might need some support here on the mountain.’

‘That sounds as if he is on my side...’

‘Yes, of course he is. Do you doubt him?

‘Things have gotten very complicated,’ I said, and quickly told her about Demeter and Persephone’s disappearance, and Hephaestus’s claim that someone or group wanted to kill us.

She linked her arm in mine and led me to a divan near the window. KK guarded the door.

Athena was the next-best thing to Demeter’s calming and knowledgeable influence that I could wish for.

‘I think you must trust Posey...’

‘Yes, I will. Do you know where he is? I asked.

‘No, he didn’t tell me where he was going. I’m sure he will be in touch with you soon. If I see him, I’ll tell him to contact you, of course. But you are the supreme god of gods, don’t you know where everyone is?’ she asked, with a teasing twinkle in her eye.

I had to laugh.

‘You know very well that Poseidon has his own domain in the oceans and waters of the world. I don’t know what he gets up to there...’

‘But you can visit him?’ she asked.

‘Of course.”

‘Then why don’t you?’

‘Because finding Demeter and your half-sister, Persephone, is my absolute priority. That’s one of the reasons I came to you first. I thought Perse might have contacted you.’

‘No, she hasn’t,’ she said and then placed her hand reassuringly on my arm. ‘Look, you do have enemies here now, as Hephaestus warned you. Hera is one, of course. She hates Demeter for taking you from her, and Hera would certainly like to put a sizeable wedge between you and Demeter. However, I don’t think Hera would risk a direct conflict with you unless she had some pretty solid support.’

‘Have you someone in mind?’ I asked.

‘Ares would be top of my list. He has hated me since the Trojan war and would love to get even with me by destroying the great Zeus because he sees you as my protector...’

‘And I hope I am,’ I said.

She affectionately squeezed my arm.

‘I see the Trojan sympathizers, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, and Aphrodite, as your likely foes,’ she said. ‘My advice is that you should avoid them and Hera until you have linked up with Poseidon. Hermes and Hephaestus will also support you although I doubt they will be of much use.’

I knew that Hephaestus had once unsuccessfully tried to rape Athena. She had every right to despise him, and yet she was far too generous spirited to hold a grudge. I loved her dearly for that. It is that generosity of spirit that is generally so lacking in the modern mortal world. There are exceptions, of course. There always are. Hephaestus had a lot to answer for. After his assault on her virtue, Athena chose to remain a virgin and became known as Athena Parthenos, Athena the Virgin – a rather exaggerated statement of her lifestyle, I have to say.

‘Whatever you decide to do, do not forget your immortal abilities here on Olympus. Many are saying that you have lost your godly touch. You must show them that they are wrong. Their antagonism will soon fade in the light of mighty Zeus’s powers. And watch your back with Hera. She may want to make a trade with Demeter’s life; Hera cannot be trusted.’

‘You think she has Demeter?’ I asked.

‘I doubt it, but she will certainly have something to do with it.’

‘Will you become a mortal and join Demeter, Perse and me?’ I asked.

‘Why?’ she asked suspiciously.

‘Because the United States badly needs people with your moral integrity, intelligence, trustworthiness, and ability to think strategically and compassionately.’

‘Thanks for that,’ she said, laughing and affectionately squeezing my arm again. ‘I’ll think about it,’ she added.

‘You are with me in this, aren’t you? I asked.

‘Of course, I am,’ she said.

KK growled, which disturbed me, and by now you should realize why it did.

Yet it was what she said next that really sent shivers up and down my spine.

‘Did Perse enjoy the chocolates?’