The Myth Of Clardusa

Prolouge

Long ago in Greece, in the temple of the goddess Anithea, there lived a priestess who worshipped said goddess daily. The villagers went to the temple only to admire the beautiful Priestess over the goddess, which started to frustrate her. Although the Priestess was beautiful and loyal to the goddess, she was vain, selfish, and unkind. She took advantage of their generosity, thinking she could get away with anything due to her beauty and that she had her purity due to being Anithea's Priestess.

One day, the sea god Posiwin arrived at the temple, and when his eyes first saw the woman, he fell in love with the vain Priestess. He tried wooing her with gifts and charms, but she rejected him, calling his trinkets trash. When he tried again, it seemed to work, but the vain woman called him a repulsive fish and rejected his offerings. Enraged by her rejection, he chased her through the temple and mated with her while she was praying to her goddess for help.

The fish then did her in front of the goddess statue, looking down on them. After being satisfied with what he'd done, the sea god fled the temple just as Anithea arrived at her domain to see her Priestess, worn and panicking, with her clothes torn and hair a mess. The Priestess begged the goddess to punish the sea god for defiling the temple. Anithea was enraged that the girl had allowed herself to be taken advantage of in her temple.

The Priestess, blazing with fury, unleashed a torrent of shouts at the goddess for failing to pursue the sea god for his transgressions. Growing even more incensed by the audacity of the Priestess trying to dictate her actions, the goddess realized that the Priestess showed no remorse for her behavior. In response, the goddess decreed a punishment befitting the Priestess's callousness and transformed her from a once radiant beauty into a monstrous Gorgon, the embodiment of her inner ugliness.

The metamorphosis was a terrifying sight to behold. It happened so quickly that the Priestess attempted to apologize, but it was too late. Shimmering wings of gold burst forth from her back, her once smooth skin transformed into glistening scales, her flowing locks morphed into a writhing mass of venomous serpents, her delicate hands turned into razor-sharp claws with a metallic sheen, her feet evolved into powerful talons, tusks erupted from her mouth while her teeth elongated into menacing fangs. Her visage twisted into a grotesque, snake-like appearance.

The Priestess, now transformed into a Gorgon, fled in terror from the temple and sought the help of the nearby villagers. However, when they saw her, they were instantly turned to stone. Misunderstood and feared, the Gorgon was mistaken for an aggressor and was relentlessly pursued by the villagers. As she fled, she delved deeper into the dense woods, where she caught a glimpse of her reflection in a clear pond and recoiled in horror. Confronted by her monstrous form, the Gorgon sought refuge in the desolate remains of a temple dedicated to the very goddess she once revered but now rejected.

As her sanity slowly deteriorated day by day and night by night, she found herself descending further into the abyss of the monstrous nature that the world and the gods had branded her with. Despite numerous valiant attempts by brave warriors to defeat the beast on behalf of the goddess, just like her own heart, they all met the same fate, turning into statues that adorned the ruins surrounding the temple she called home.