Muse Unexpected Read online

  The waiter interrupted the two women as he sat down the first set of dishes full of food. Aletheria inhaled deeply, taking in the food’s aroma.

  “What the heck are you?” Sophie said.

  “I adore roasted chicken. This restaurant makes a chicken so tender the meat falls off the bone and melts in your mouth. You know the Greeks make the best chicken, with a hint of lemon they— but, there I go again, branching off into another topic, my sincerest apologies. I said to you that I am the book. Some say when a writer creates the written word a piece of their soul is given to his or her creation. Well, I took it to a higher level. Once, too long ago to even admit—so don’t bother asking—I was a very powerful Oracle. An Oracle is a sort of witch. I was known worldwide, as one temple after another was erected to please me. It is quite easy to lose oneself in the adoration of others, and once you begin to see yourself through the eyes of the adoring masses you tend to lose your grasp on reality. You really should try this rice. It is simply heaven.”

  Aletheria reached for a serving spoon and piled a large amount of rice and several pieces of chicken onto Sophie’s empty plate.

  “Think of me as an ancient Greek talk show host. With fame, comes great power and responsibility.” She emphasized each word with the swinging of a chicken wing.

  “Now you’re just quoting the movie, Spiderman.”

  “Oh. Spiderman. Wearing his tight little costume. They always get such handsome boys to play that role and that upside-down kiss. Oh, and they always have the tightest little…you really need to stop leading me off topic, Sophia. And with great power can also come great jealousy. Not from my followers and not even from the non-believers, because at the time there were so many gods to worship nobody cared who worshipped what and whom. Today, of course, is a different story. However, my ever-growing popularity did not go unnoticed by the gods.”

  Sophie interrupted, with a quiet whisper, “So, they are real?”

  “Goodness, me.” Aletheria exclaimed. “Yes, they are real and incredibly dangerous. Take my word when I say the gods despised anyone whose popularity surpassed their own.”

  Great, so the Greek gods are the popular girls in school, multiplied by infinity. This keeps getting better and better. I wonder if Muses have to take yearbook pictures.

  “At a party given by a king who is long since dead, I ran into Aphrodite, who was always a temperamental hag.”

  “I thought she was supposed to be the most beautiful woman in the world.” Sophie said, between bites.

  Aletheria rolled her eyes. “Everyone used to go on and on about her beauty. She’s so beautiful. Well, let me say…her hair was a bit on the limp side and she didn’t have much of a chin to speak of, not that you could tell because she tended to have two of them. And if it weren’t for her ability to use glamour, everyone would have noticed she had a bit of a mustache and blemish problem. And her feet, oh my, the sharpest cheese grater couldn’t help those cracking heels of hers. They smelled too.”

  “What’s glamour?” Sophie asked.

  “It’s a sort of magic. It gives a person the ability to change and adjust their appearance in a way that makes them irresistible.”

  Finally, something I can look forward to. Why worry about makeup, when you can glamour? I knew there had to be an upside to being a Muse. Can’t find time to shave your legs, no problem. A wink of my eye and poof, I’ve got glamour.

  Aletheria took a sip of her water. “So, there I was, conversing with an attractive young man from Crete who had arms I couldn’t keep my hands off of and a stomach I wanted to…well, he was the most beautiful man I had ever seen. It wasn’t until later, after numerous drinks of the most amazing wine, I found out he was an Olympian. And as fate would have it, he was also the latest love interest of Aphrodite. Like that little tramp didn’t already have at least six or seven other men she was…. Sorry, there I go again. Well, considering what happened to poor Medusa, a girl I had grown up with, I left the party, hoping I had neither caught Aphrodite’s attention nor made her angry. One thing you need to understand is that Olympians will not accept any sort of rejection, and regardless of the consequences the young god chased after me. Aphrodite couldn’t punish him, so what did he care?”

  They don’t sound much different from the guys I know.

  “So, I’m guessing he found you, begged you to change your mind and you melted?” Sophie asked.

  “Well, I’d like to think I put up some fight,” Aletheria replied. “Remember, I was The Oracle, after all. But then he came up with an idea, a way that I would never die or could ever be hurt by Aphrodite, nor any god’s wrath. After some discussion, among other things,” Aletheria winked, “He created a diary of sorts. Except this was no ordinary book. By writing my thoughts into it, I not only gave the book my written word but also my soul, piece by little piece, until everything I was, everything I could ever be, was now tucked safely away in the book. A book that none of the elements, nor god nor human, could hurt. I was transformed into a different sort of being.”

  This is getting good. “Something tells me there’s a catch to it. It’s never that easy.”

  “There was a catch. The book was both my salvation and my damnation. It was a trap ensuring no other man could have me but this young selfish god and, as with all Olympians, his attentions soon wavered. Before I knew it, I was nothing more than an old book left on a shelf. Several centuries passed of me feeling sorry for myself, thinking I was the biggest fool there ever was, unsure how an Oracle of my standing and power was now someone’s forgotten love, trapped forever and put away.”

  “It must have been horrible,” Sophie said, taking a sip of her water.

  The Oracle set her fork down. “It was cruel. But, then, one day a young Muse found me. I had been left in a remote ruin to rot. The Muse’s name was Zoe. I believe she was a Muse of life, a generalist in regards to inspiration—life covers so much—but she tended to focus on second chances, giving those who have fallen from grace a shot at redemption. She found me and we struck a deal. I would no longer be bound to the young god’s keep, nor controlled by him any longer. In addition to having the safety of the book to protect me against Aphrodite, because that old hag never forgets anything, I would also receive protection from the Muses, a group of goddesses even Aphrodite wouldn’t trifle with. You have to remember, love without inspiration is not love, it's lust. I also received other ‘benefits’ from being under the Muses’ care. I got back all of my lost Oracle abilities and I also could move between the worlds: the world the book represented, this world and other Olympian realms you will soon have access to. It was like being a god and all I had to do was be bound to a life of servitude to the Muses. ”

  “Considering the situation you were in, I think you got a great deal,” Sophie said.

  Aletheria put down the desert menu and called the waiter over. “We’ll take two sundaes and I’ll also have a slice of that delicious lemon cake your grandmother makes.” The waiter left and returned quickly, placing two large sundaes in front of the women, along with a large, heavily frosted slice of lemon cake. The slice sat on a plate coated with powdered sugar.

  “That is my story. I serve the Vasilikós of Greece and Italy, of which your grandmother Georgia is head of.”

  “Silli what?”

  “Good God. Hasn’t your mother even explained about the Vasilikós? There are nine of them? The original Nine Daughters established the Nine Vasilikós?”

  Sophie shook her head.

  The Oracle put her spoon down. “Why do I even bother to think that simple tasks like Muses 101 would have been the first thing they covered with you. Have they even explained the gods and how they fit into all of this?”

  “Cut them some slack.” Sophie spat back, not meaning for it to come out as rudely as it sounded. “I’m sorry, but you have to stop tearing my family down.”

  Aletheria eyed the girl. “May I?” the Oracle asked, pointing to the seat next to the girl. Sophie shrugged a ‘h
elp yourself’.

  Aletheria moved next to Sophie. “I’d like to gather some information, but it requires me to touch your hand.” Sophie offered her hand to the woman and Aletheria took it in her own and turned it palm side up and began tracing the lines on the girl’s palm. The Oracle’s brow furrowed. She brought her face closer to Sophie’s and looked into the girl’s eyes.

  The surface to Aletheria’s eyes became blank and shone like a mirror, reflecting Sophie’s eyes back at her. Sophie’s mind was freefalling into the infinite depth of the reflection as she watched her eyes change colors and glowed with an inner light.

  “The light you see now is normal for a Muse, but there is something more to you,” Aletheria remarked.

  Sophie was beginning to feel uncomfortable, as she saw stars twinkle from the reflection of her own eyes.

  “I see the stars, like the elders,” Aletheria said. “I see the heavens. How is this possible?”

  Sophie ripped her hand away from Aletheria, breaking the connection, but the Oracle remained in her trance. “You are no ordinary girl,” she said. “You are no mere Muse.”

  Aletheria sat back in her chair, her eyes now rolling back into her head. She threw her hands up, cradling her head, moaning in pain. “Someone is trying to stop me from knowing. Someone is trying to hold something in place to blind my sight. Who would dare?” Aletheria asked as she brought her other hand back to her head. “It’s a spell, a veil of obedience. If I can focus…”

  Sweat began to bead on Aletheria’s brow, causing her drawn face to smudge and slide off in long black drips. She dragged her hands down to her throat and Sophie grimaced as Aletheria’s entire body seemed to smear and become even more grotesque, resembling the blood and guts Halloween masks that terrified Sophie as a kid. Globs of black ink dripped like mud, exposing the pure white canvas of Aletheria’s face. She no longer had a mouth or eyes, each of these holes dripped thick, tar-like ink, reminding Sophie of poor animals caught in an oil spill. Aletheria grabbed the tablecloth and ripped it away from the table, somehow managing not to send the numerous dishes flying in all directions. Taking the cloth, Aletheria covered her face as even more ink seemed to surge and bubble from within her.

  Sophie didn’t know whether to applaud or get some help. Aletheria moaned one final time then slumped back in her chair, breathing heavily.

  “Please excuse me while I fix my face.” Within a blink she was gone and before Sophie could react Aletheria appeared again, restored to her original state.

  “I know everything and I need to have a talk with Georgia,” Aletheria said, throwing several large Euros onto the table and standing up to leave. “On the way, we can cover the gods.”

  They walked out of the café onto an uneven sidewalk made of huge slabs of marble. Sophie watched as Aletheria’s flowing skirt whipped around and changed itself into a pair of English riding pants and the bodice became a crisp, white, long sleeved cotton shirt. The sleeves rolled themselves up and the once-stylish heels became a pair of riding boots. The Oracle shook her head, causing her long tresses to fall away, leaving a crisp pageboy haircut. “When it came to hair, the 1920’s was my favorite decade. It was such liberation from the Victorian era.”

  “You said we would talk about the gods?” Sophie said.

  “Yes…” Aletheria answered. “First, they aren’t gods at all. I want you to try and picture the world during its infancy. Humans needed something to help guide their lives. Now, I’m not going to get into a theological discussion, since I have limited time today. So, when I say God, take it at face value. So, up in the heavens, God decides maybe a single god option is too complicated for his beloved children to grasp. And I’m guessing if God could be tired after creating the world, he was at a point of needing a vacation. He created the Heavens and the Earth and although I’ve never had the blessing of children myself, I am told raising children is an exhausting adventure.”

  “God gets exhausted?” Sophie asked.

  “Well, not the way you’re thinking. So in his infinite wisdom, God calls some of his most trusted associates to his side. They go by many names, but we’ll call them Angels. He said, ‘I’m going to take a few days off, and while I’m gone I want you select few to watch the children.’ The Angels agree and God and the Angels come up with this idea of creating what is termed as a polytheistic society, meaning a society with more than one god. So, instead of saying the world and life are based from a single supreme being, we’ll let the children believe there is one god responsible for making the crops grow and another god responsible for love and another god for the seas. Are you following me?” Aletheria turns to look at Sophie.

  “It seems like a lot of work so God can take a vacation. Are you sure this is the way it happened?”

  Aletheria nodded. “Use whatever title you want. God needed a break. Don’t you sometimes have to take a break when you’re working on a long assignment from your school?”

  “Yeah, but…I’m not God. Can we sit for a second? I feel like I’m going to pass out,” Sophie replied.

  Aletheria walked over to a small park and Sophie sighed in relief, as they both sit down on a bench where the Oracle handed Sophie a bottle of water that drew itself into Aletheria’s hand.

  “Thank you,” Sophie said. “So a god for each item to explain why things are the way they are.”

  “Exactly. So with God’s help, the Angels establish themselves as these minor and major deities and God goes off on his vacation. Doing what, I have no idea, although Greece does have some of the most magnificent beaches. Now I know a lot of people believe Angels are these perfect beings who only do good, and for the most part that is what they were, at least until they started taking their role as gods a bit too seriously.”

  “I bet I can guess what happens. In the drama club, there was this one girl who always got the big parts and I always got stuck as stage or prop manager. Last spring she broke her leg during rehearsals for Hello Dolly and I was the understudy, so they gave it to me.”

  “And how did that make you feel?”

  “Fantastic. At least until she convinced the drama teacher it would be so incredibly “forward thinking” if we had a Dolly Levy in a wheelchair.”

  “It must have been a horrible production. So glad I missed it. So, like you, the Angels find out they like the adoration, being worshipped, having temples and statues created to honor them and the roar of the crowds. In response to this newfound power, they created a whole world hovering between Heaven and Earth, called Mount Olympus. Olympus is where these new gods ruled and sat in judgment of mortals and themselves.”

  “And let me guess,” Sophie interrupted. “Like Clash of the Titans, they were total divas. Always walking around, saying this is my hairbrush and don’t use my pancake makeup. Like that girl in my drama class.”

  “You do have a way with words. Yes, there were constant battles between the gods, which are bound to happen with continual power struggles. More importantly, they discovered mortal love, and not only love but also sex with mortals, was like a drug to them. And it changed them. The more mortal love and adoration they had, they more they desired. A god could and would go from one mortal obsession to another, not concerned about what it left in its wake. Every loathing trait in the human race had been taken up and multiplied by ten in these powerful beings.”

  “Okay, so you’re telling me the gods, these Angels, were complete and utter sluts, sleeping with anything that had a pulse. Ew, now it’s getting kinda gross,” Sophie said.

  “The result of the mating between gods and humans was the creation of a type of beings caught between two worlds. They had one foot in Olympus and one foot on Earth. They were labeled the Demigods and forced to remain on Earth. These poor beings did everything within their power to hide their Olympian heritage.”

  “Why?" Sophie asked. “I would think having ties to Olympus would be beneficial. I mean…if I had this sort of ‘get out of jail free’ card, it would be pretty hard not to use
it. Wouldn’t it be like instant VIP status?”

  “During the early years that may have been true, but as the reign of the Olympians went on, the Demigods were considered expendable. Remember, the Olympians had enough problems dealing with their own kind. Adding another layer of superior beings meant having to share the love of mortals, and that wasn’t something they were willing to do. As the Olympians’ addiction to mortal love grew, the adoration of mortals wavered because Olympian cruelty became unbearable. The line between love and hate is easily crossed and the gods discovered a similar rush could be derived from terror and fear.

  So, as you can imagine, the Olympians fell out of favor. Temples, statues, anything created to show respect for these gods were destroyed and, like addicts who’ve been deprived of their drug of choice, the Olympians became enraged and inflicted even more harm and pain. Unable to fight the gods, the mortals attacked those less powerful, the Demigods, who from no fault of their own were guilty by association.”

  “Georgia referred to herself as a Demigod,” Sophie said, half to herself, half to the Oracle. Oh my God. Is that what I am? Some sort of freak of nature?

  “Yes, she is and so are you.”

  Aletheria took a sip of her water, replacing the cap back onto the bottle. “The Demigods were hunted down and killed by both those from Olympus and those from the mortal world. Some didn’t even have a chance, not understanding the power they had or choosing not to use it, in complete defiance of their Olympian heritage. Some would rather die than toss a single lightning bolt or do anything that proved their Olympian father or mother gave them anything of value. Their Olympian family had turned their backs on them. The Demigods, in turn, rejected anything having to do with Olympus and died for it.”