Rants and Rambles

Myth Part One

{The God and The Metal Birds}
By Puff

Before ~
There was once a city in Greece called Athens. On the very edge of this city sat a small house, and in this house resided a man. He was tall and slim, with gentle green eyes. He had brown hair that never seemed to stay neat and a shy smile. His name was Antain Vlahakis.

Antain lived alone in his small house on the outskirts of the city, and he worked as an assistant in a blacksmith's shop in the town. Although he was a kind, honest man, he mostly kept to himself.

But he knew things, everyone said so. Everyone in Athens knew that he knew more than they did. He had always been the top student in Athens' schools, and he was always the first one who knew the answers to the people's questions.

Everyone in the town knew that he was too intelligent to be working as an assistant, but they were never brave enough to tell it to him. They said that Antain should have been out in the world doing great things; that he should be working as a mathematician, or a scientist, or even a politician. But Antain did nothing of the sort. He kept working at the blacksmith, and for years all was normal and quiet.

But then there was something about that intelligent man who sat in silence that caught the eye of a goddess.

This goddess was Athena, and she was intrigued by this man. She was confused by him. Why would someone of this higher cognitive level not do something about it? Why wouldn't he tell others of what he knew?

She was so curious, and so baffled, that one day she decided to ask him.

Athena had been checking in on Athens, as it was her duty to look over the city that she had helped to create when she walked up to Antain Vlahakis' house in disguise. She was dressed as an old woman, and in order to increase the authenticity of her costume, she held a gnarled wooden cane in her hands. She took uneasy steps and leaned against the cane as if it was the only thing preventing her from collapsing.

But on the way to Antain's house, she heard a sound coming from the woods on the left side of the path. She turned her head towards the sound and followed it until she saw a clearing. Inside this clearing was a tree stump, and on that stump was a child. She looked no more than two years old, with red hair, tanned skin, and eyes of a peculiar amber color. The child looked to be abandoned.

Athena turned to leave the clearing, but then the child called out. She turned and saw the child reaching out to her. Athena thought for a second about just leaving the child there but then decided that the best thing that she could do was to take the child with her and to try to find her a home with another family in Athens. But her curiosity was at her highest, so she walked over to the child, kissed her forehead, and murmured, "Μένουν στη θέση τους." She left the child there and planned to come back in less than an hour. She started to walk back to Antain's house.

When she knocked on his door, he seemed surprised to see the old woman on his doorstep, as he did not recognize her as one of the inhabitants of Athens. Though Athens was a large city, everyone in the city knew who everyone else was.

When Antain had asked the old woman who she was, she simply said, "A friend." Antain invited the woman into his house and asked her what she was here for.

"I am here to ask you one simple question," The old woman said. "If you are such an intelligent person, why don't you do anything about it? Why don't you tell the world all that you know?"

Antain looked confused for a moment, but when the question registered in his head he had answered, "My father was a wise man, and before he died he made sure to tell me one thing: 'If you save your voice and your words, later on in life you will have more to say when life needs it.' I have stayed with this philosophy all my life."

Athena had thought about this for a moment and understood the wisdom, and the logic, in it. Before Antain's eyes, she transformed into her goddess form in a bright flash of light. The gnarled cane fell to the ground, now unneeded. The goddess' tawny hair was pulled back into a braid and fell down to her waist. She had tanned skin and her eyes were of a striking grey color. She was dressed in pale ivory robes tied with an orange sash. Athena seemed to glow with an otherworldly light.

When Antain realized who he was looking at, he immediately fell to his knees and bowed to the imposing goddess.

"I am sorry, but I did not recognize you before," Antain said quickly and quietly, his head still bowed.

"Nonsense," the goddess said. "I was in disguise for that very purpose. Now stand up and look at me." Antain followed her orders and looked into her eyes.

"I came to you for one purpose: To ask you that one question," Athena began. "I am impressed by your modesty, and so I will give you a gift."

"That is not necessary," Antain said quickly. He averted his gaze to the floor.

"Are you refusing the gift of a goddess?" Athena responded sharply, her eyes suddenly blazing. "You understand that that is a sign of utmost disrespect?"

Antain looked up, back into the steely grey eyes of the goddess. "I meant that as no disrespect," he began. " I just do not think that is necessary. I was only doing my job, you see."

Athena raised her eyebrows. "And what would that job be, may I ask?"

Antain did not reply but instead looked back at the floor.

"What I have to give you, no matter the unintended disrespect is more of a task. I am going to give you a child. I found her in the woods when I was walking here, and I need to find her a family. You seem like an honest, kind, man. I hope that you can live up to those traits."

Athena walked out of the room and back into the woods to find the child, leaving Antain alone in the house. He wasn't sure what to make of the situation. He had never met a goddess before and therefore really didn't know what to expect from Athena.

When she came back into the house a few minutes later, this time holding the child, she promptly handed her to Antain and then wiped her hands on her robes.

"She is yours to keep," she began, "Teach her the skills of kindness and intelligence, for she will need them later on in life. I have given her the gift of wisdom, but that alone will not be enough to get her through life. You may call her whatever you like. I will come in check in on you and her every year. Goodbye, Antain Vlahakis. Καλή αντάμωση."

The goddess gave Antain a stern look, and with that disappeared with a flurry of ivory fabric, and Antain was left with a child he didn't know and a task he wasn't sure how to complete.