July 27, 9531 BC
Styxx paused in the garden of the Agriosan-the sacred temple of Bet'anya Agriosa, the Atlantean goddess of misery, wrath, and the hunt. She was said to be the right hand of Dikastis, their god of justice. And she was the goddess the Atlanteans prayed to whenever they'd been wronged. The one who meted out justice and retribution. Testament to their belief in her were the numerous katadesmoi-curse stones and tablets and lead sheets-that littered her altar and gardens. Each katadesmos held the specific action the invoker wanted the goddess to take against the person they felt had done harm to them.
The harsh curses outlined in Atlantean in extremely vivid detail made him wonder how many katadesmoi Ryssa had inscribed for him at home in Didymos.
Unwilling to speculate on so great a number, he frowned at Bet'anya's statue at the end of a large outdoor atrium pool that reminded him of Athena's in Didymos. The Atlantean goddess was tall and slender, dressed in a sheer peplos that showed the outline of a perfect body while running. She held a shield decorated with a winged horse in one hand, and a spear in the other, angled over her shoulder as if she was about to throw it. A mop of unruly curls spilled out from beneath an Atlantean helm that had been pushed up on her head to expose her beautiful features. At the opposite end of the pool was the statue of a fierce male soldier who faced the goddess.
Dressed only in a chlamys that fell from his left shoulder, he stood proud and defiant in a helm very similar to the one Styxx wore. His long hair spilled just past his right shoulder. He held a xiphos in his right hand while his left held a quiver of arrows.
"Is there something I can do for you, Highness?" a priestess asked nervously.
Styxx turned slightly to see the tiny woman who barely reached mid-chest on him. He offered her a slight bow. "Forgive me, priestess, I meant no disrespect to your goddess or you. The temple door was open and I was curious about the city's patron."
His army had defeated the Atlantean city of Bettias two days ago and were awaiting reinforcements to hold it before they continued onward to the mainland. Since their occupation began, they'd been bringing wounded Atlantean soldiers to the temple next door that belonged to the Atlantean god of healing. Styxx had overseen the last of their wounded deposited into the priests' care just a short while ago, and as he'd started back for their camp, he'd spied this temple.
For some unknown reason, he'd been drawn to it.
"Are you familiar with our gods?" she asked.
"I have limited knowledge, but no real understanding. Such as the two statues here. I assume she's the goddess the city's named for, but I have no idea who the soldier is."
"It's a wise man who admits what he does not know and who doesn't pretend to know something he's ignorant of." The priestess smiled. "Theirs is a tale of supreme heartbreak, Highness. And it's why Bet'anya's the goddess of wrath and retribution. Before Dikastis was consecrated to our pantheon, Bathymaas was the original goddess of justice and order. The daughter of Chaos, she was born from the light powers to balance out her father and to keep him on the side of good. During the first war of the Chthonians, Bathymaas assembled a team of seven warriors called the
274;peron."
"As in
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