Woo~ Woo~
As the morning sun rose, the desolate blare of horns washed away the blood and chaos of the previous night, shattering the dreams of the Athenians. In the grave and solemn atmosphere, the summoned citizens either instinctively opened their doors and windows to look on from afar, or stepped into the streets and gathered along both sides of the roads.
The city was bustling, packed with people. Countless gazes, some surprised, some confused, some tense, all converged on the limestone hill at the highest point of the Athenian Acropolis.
Under the watch of the masses, Valkyries clad in white hooded cloaks, carrying swan wings on their backs and holding divine-iron shields and spears of light, rose gracefully from the Areopagus and spread themselves in ordered layers above the Acropolis of Athens like a steel vault sheltering the city.
Then the well-equipped Athenian hoplites, divided into several phalanxes, marched out of the barracks in steady formation with long strides, presenting themselves before the Athenians before advancing toward the foot of the Acropolis. Tens of thousands moved as one. The earth trembled, iron rang, and the fierce, murderous presence of the soldiers came crashing over the crowd like tigers loosed from their pens.
Along the roads, residents found their fists unconsciously clenching, their faces flushing, their blood surging. Swept up by the emotion of the moment, they could not help recalling that the mobilization before the first Battle of Marathon had felt just as solemn and magnificent.
Bzzzz!
Then the sky suddenly darkened. Brilliant patterns of light crossed one another as the eighty-eight constellations lit up one by one. Beams of light descended amid a shower of multicolored stardust, arranging themselves in orderly ranks along the turning steps of the Athenian Acropolis, all together guarding the arrival of that shining star.
Bathed in starlight, the final link of the eighty-eight constellations, Sagittarius, famed as the "Goddess's Personal Guard," clad in golden holy armor, holding a golden bow, and bearing Medusa's shield upon his back, descended together with the Serpent Goddess Medusa, guided by her hand, metallic wings beating in graceful flight.
Right after them, streaks of light came plunging down one after another, centering themselves around Sagittarius and the Serpent Goddess and taking their places to the left and right of the core formed by eight marble columns.
The entrance was dazzling beyond compare and immediately seized the initiative. The immense divine majesty, like rolling storm clouds, swept away in a single blow all the rumors that had been circulating through the city in recent days, questioning the identities of the Holy King and the goddess.
After several days of upheaval, and with the Magecraft projections that had been imprinted throughout every street and alley, the residents could recognize these figures at a glance. Their belief in the return of His Majesty King Theseus, the Holy King, and Medusa, the Serpent Goddess, became utterly firm.
Then, following the proper sequence, the Parthenon entered the stage of lighting the sacred flame, burning incense, and offering prayers and sacrifices to the gods.
As the Holy King, Samael personally handed the flaming arrow to the High Priestess of Sparta in the goddess's sight.
Whoosh!
The bowstring was drawn full, and the arrow shot into the sky.
Hum!
After a brief silence, the sky darkened, the sun and moon shone together, the stars blazed as one, and thunder rolled unceasingly, as if the gods themselves were enraged.
Then the heavens became the bow, the star-trails the arrow, and boundless divine might condensed to its utmost limit. A beam of golden light carrying the force of overwhelming thunder crashed down like a comet and struck the tall, solemn metal torch stand before the Parthenon atop the Acropolis.
In an instant, raging flames surged up, and the sacred fire of Olympus, dormant for many years, was fully reignited.
Yet the flames, which should have burned golden, instead billowed with black smoke and glowed a ghastly green. A heavy stench of rotting corpses spread through all of Athens. The residents, nearly nauseated, vaguely saw their prosperous holy city reduced in the blaze to broken walls and ruined stones, with mountains of decaying corpses crawling with flies. Carrion crows and vultures landed on the bodies, pecking at the livers and flesh of the dead.
As the vision grew clearer and they seemed to draw closer to those mangled corpses, the people of Athens suddenly recognized their own faces and clothes among them, along with the twisted agony in their expressions at the moment of death and their shattered bodies.
Wooo!
In a daze, the black cloud of death hanging over Athens gathered into one hideous wraith after another. Letting out shrill howls, they dived at the living below as though to drag them all down into hell. But just as the skin-crawling chill seeped into their flesh and the miserable wails poured into their minds, the whole layered illusion shattered and dissolved amid the terrified screams of the Athenians.
As if it had all been nothing but a nightmare.
And yet, pale-faced and still reeling, the people looked up to see that the sacred fire still burned that sinister sickly green.
"Destruction! It's destruction! The goddess is warning us!"
"That's right. This war has nothing to do with Athens. We have no reason to fight for the Spartans!"
"It's all that Spartan woman's fault! She brought this horror into Athens!"
Crash! Crash! Crash!
As the frightened Athenians began whispering among themselves, a chain of thunder split the sky like divine wrath, making the residents instinctively fall silent, pale-faced and trembling.
Creeeak...
Then bolts of lightning struck before the Parthenon, and under the horrified gaze of the Athenians, the towering statue of Athena, tens of meters high and once the guardian of Athens, began to resonate with trembling divine patterns across its golden helmet, breastplate, robes, and ornaments. No longer standing serenely with spear resting on shoulder and shield beside her, it moved like a living thing. Its joints turned, the Aegis rose in defense, and the stone spear thrust forward with killing force.
Its face, carved from ivory to give it a soft and delicate tone, now blazed with fury. Its gem-set eyes shone with divine light and fixed themselves on one particular point.
Whoosh!
In the next instant, the goddess statue slowly drew into a forward-leaning throwing stance. Then the stone spear left its hand with a shrill wail and, under the stunned gaze of the Athenians, blasted toward the military harbor of Piraeus with overwhelming force.
Boom!
At once, smoke and dust surged up, the earth shook, and pitch-black cracks of unfathomable depth spread open. Columns of black-green smoke, carrying foulness and decay, rose from the harbor and rushed along the roads, through fields, villages, towns, and straight toward Athens.
Wherever they passed, plants withered and livestock convulsed and died, a vision of plague descending like the end of the world.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Within the Temple of Asclepius, the disaster bell tolled ceaselessly, its heavy echoes like hammer blows striking the hearts of the people.
What would destroy Athens was this plague!
The Athenians suddenly understood. Seeing that plague-miasma about to reach them, the citizens trembled in terror, icy cold flooding through their bodies, many seized by the urge to turn and run.
"Prayer Bow, Arrow of Purification, let the gods bear witness and grant us their blessing! Begone, pestilence!"
Just as the black-green smoke columns were about to invade Athens, a solemn divine prayer spread through the city. Dressed in flowing white, Helen bent down and kissed a pure white arrow. Under the power of the gods, she slowly drew open the divine bow that had once been sealed within the Roman Pantheon, and patterns of light began to shine upon it.
Hum!
As the arrow flew forth, it pierced the black-green curtain of smoke. Like a red-hot blade slicing through butter, it produced a shrill ratlike scream and melted a clear opening through the mass under the white radiance.
Then streams of gold-white light shot down from the starry heavens, piercing through the black mist with unstoppable force, dissolving and purging it again and again until the final trace vanished.
The evil plague... had been purified?!
Still shaken, the Athenians stared in dumbfounded silence toward the Parthenon.
As the breeze stirred, a veil lifted, revealing golden hair like woven sunlight and a peerless face that combined the qualities of maiden, noblewoman, and goddess. The people of Athens stood stunned, utterly entranced.
A goddess! It's a goddess! This has to be a goddess sent by divine will specifically to save Athens!
After their emotions had been tossed violently up and down like a cart over rough ground, relief at surviving and the fascination of that breathtaking glimpse swept through them. In their excitement, the Athenians erupted one after another into deafening cheers, celebrating in a frenzy the goddess who had destroyed the source of the plague and protected Athens.
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