Carved by the Gods

The Banishment

Banishment wasn't a bad thing, I quite enjoyed it actually. There was a forest and meadow a few miles away from the temple, so I traveled there and tried to build a home in a cave nearby, the door was blue, the interior had bright tapestries I had snuck out of markets, it wasn't in my nature to steal but if I was going to be alone, I'd like to have a decorated home. It took a while but I had managed to find clay, and made pots, plates, even cutlery so I could eat properly. Out here, I wasn't a monster, the snakes that plagued my head hissed every now and then but for the most part, they stayed quiet. They didn't eat, but they did sleep, they no longer tried to bite me. Being banished had it's perks, I couldn't hurt anyone was the best one, but I got to study as much as I wanted, I could read all of the scriptures and books I wanted, I could paint, draw, I could pick flowers and lay in the meadow, looking at clouds. It was peaceful. But people came looking for me. It had happened too much. It reminded me of how the temple reacted when they saw that Lexa had cursed me. By accident I looked at one of the professors, they turned to stone as well, after that I shielded my eyes and fled the temple so no one else could suffer the same fate there. I hoped my mom hadn't heard what happened to me, so she wouldn't feel more shame or disappointment for her family. The odds weren't in my favor, word would have spread from Athens to Arkadia like wildfire. A new monster. A new fear for the mortals. Some new bounty for monster hunters. Luckily it was only the Mount Weather people who had attempted to harm me, the rest were just trying to make ends meet, I could tell by their dress and shoes. Poor men with nothing to lose. Women just trying to provide. Children were the worst. Their fear was on display for me as they threw their stones and spears or when they tried to sneak around one of the memorial trees while I was carving in it only to come face to face with me. So many lives frozen in place, so many statues, I carved their names into trees in the forest and left their body next to it, so their family could claim them. My stomach always knotted, I stopped throwing up after they turned to stone a few weeks ago, I only cried now. I began to wear a himation over my head to cover the snakes, to stop the wandering eyes of travelers if there were ever any. I had been living in peace for a long while. Though with time, it grew sad. The loneliness would set in when I would lay on my cot at night, or when I'd be weaving the flowers together, like today. The scent of hyacinth, orchids, and cliff roses filled my cave as I pieced together new wreaths, the next one would be daffodil, cistus, and crocus flowers. Purples, yellows, and pinks, something to cheer up the dead and their families if they found them. I was thinking of my mother, and curious to how she was doing, was she still creating tonics and oils for the town? Was she mourning me? Or was she...could she have died by now? From shame. Her husband had dishonored our family but I had been the one to destroy it.

"She's doing fine." Lexa's voice said from behind me. I whipped around and threw the wreath I had made at her head. She didn't turn to stone when I looked at her, because she was a Goddess. Or was it because she was the one who cursed me.

"You're not welcome in here. You need to leave now." I screamed. Lexa didn't flinch was the flowers hit her square in the chest, she just looked down at them.

"I know you're upset, Clarke. But I had to protect you." She said, her green eyes looked apologetic. But I didn't believe a word out of her mouth after what I had witnessed. The trial. Raven standing up for me. Even Murphy said no, in fact he'd criticized her.

"Protect me? Please. You cursed me!"

"They wanted to kill you. I stopped them." She snapped. The creature was lying to me, but I couldn't even tell her I knew it was false. Monty could get into trouble and I didn't want him to be punished as I had.

"I don't believe you." I whispered. Tears flowed down my face.

"Clarke..." She started. I turned my back to her and went back to weaving, maybe I'd paint my revenge later. Then send it through the messenger to the Gods, Sterling. Then I could get into more trouble. I heard her shift nervously on her feet, as if she didn't know what to do. Good.

"May we meet again." Lexa finished. I turned around, and looked her in the eye. The weight in my chest grew heavier as I felt my anger and hate fill me.

"You better hope we don't." I hissed. Things went back to normal after that, she stopped trying to visit me, anytime she attempted I'd brush her off. I lived in a bitter peace, the loneliness grew and hardened my heart even more. I craved human interaction, I thought maybe I could speak to a nymph...or dryad, since Lexa hadn't turned, so maybe they wouldn't. But they did. I felt the Earth shift when it happened. It was like a scream sounding from the Lord of the Wild, Artigas. He was mourning their lives, so I burned the food and flowers I had for him that night. The scent of orchids and sage filled my nose, he was forgiving me. It was as if he knew it wasn't my fault completely. I cried for hours after that. Word must have spread through the statues in the forest, someone must've found them because soldiers from a far off kingdom came for me. They had chased me through the woods with their swords and spears ready to harm me, I ran until I reached a cliff, the drop off scared me, but at that moment I was prepared to do whatever it took to remain free. Even if that meant death. I wouldn't be a weapon for anyone. I stopped on the edge and pulled my himation down. Their voices got louder as they approached me, speaking Trigedasleng, the language of the Mountain Men, I could understand they were saying that they'd take me hostage. So I could be their weapon. They screamed and yelled at me to stop.

"Ma fig'ison nou Moblan." I yelled. Then I removed the cover and turned around, letting the snakes spread out and hiss loudly. The crackling noise sliced through the air, and at once, three hundred men turned to stone. I had no care for them, no sympathy, so I destroyed their statues and went to bed. It was the first time I had let the darkness inside take over. It almost tainted my land with it. But I couldn't be taken. I refuse to take innocent lives for a king to take over the land. They'd been silent since then. I constructed new flower wreaths for the unclaimed statues and hung them around their necks, when they wilted and died like everything else, I wove new ones.