05-01-06 | Mythology - Page 2 - Writers Forum

darthwader · 05-09-2006, 06:17 AM

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Absolute bottom of page 1...

...and absolute bottom of the ratings too I bet.

Jiieden · 05-09-2006, 05:15 PM

“Once Vain Glorious had spoken, the Padhishah was forced to flee her Palace. With her anima, she set out to find the far side of the world, where she might set in peace once more…” - Excerpt from the Summa Chronologia, 2nd Scroll

“Locked between Earth and Heaven, the mandate of the Padhishah has always been a precarious one. One push, and it might be extinguished – but so far, the great skill of the dynasty has kept it within the prescribed limits; the light still circles around the globe.” - Royal Historian Shazahara’s The Offspring of Lilith

“Just as each city has its own customs, each land has its own pagan gods. I have found and cursed and bound them all, so that they will not disturb my rule.” - The Most Glorious Eo

“The anima lumbered through the Ju’maran jungle. We watched it leave a path of snapped tree-limbs and crushed palm-fronds. Clearly, it was foreign-born – a stranger.

Yet stranger still was the woman perched serenely upon its back. Only an Empress might be so beautiful. Her skin was slick-smooth, and her eyes dark pools. She held the grace of a forgotten dream – a perfect aesthetic accompanied her every action. Hoops and rings of light scattered through her hair.

We approached her struck near sick with awe.

“I see you, blind gods,” she said.
“We are not blind,” we replied, “for a priest gave his vision to us. It is true that the Glorious Eo cursed us with his Diktat, and forever removed our sight. Yet the priest gave us his instead, and we feel great pleasure in the exercise of his gift, especially in regards to your Grace.”

“Then you are blessed already, and there is nothing more the Padhishah can grant you,” she said. O, her voice like clear-coursing water in the desert; bright flowers and green things sprouted in our parched hearts.

“Where do you go, Goddess of the Suns?”
“I go not to, but from,” she said.

“We shall help you; we can hide the path of your anima, though it forces its way through these lands – but they are our lands, we are the spirit of the land, liege-lady, we shall hide your way as you flee,” we replied.

“I might give you my thanks. But you know this is my right as Padhishah, and required of you,” she answered, and we knew she was right. This was our duty, and its performance filled us with great pride.
And then she was gone, and all the sights of the jungle turned to salt in one moment.

So it was that we pierced out our new eyes, so again we can see no more. For what is sight without her?”

- Memoirs of the Blinded Ones

mandax · 05-10-2006, 04:28 PM

A Lack of Love

“Virgin” was a word she had forgotten existed. It had basically been implied that she was sexually active for most of her life, and the only period of her existence that might have involved abstinence, as far as anyone was concerned, was her time in the womb. And even then, who knows, really.

The cathedral was congested. Several gods drifted around, paying their respects to various relatives and discussing the tragedy that was Athena’s sudden peril. Everything was a shadow; a silhouette; a solemn statue. Through the stained-glass windows, light did not penetrate. Everything physical was black and white, yet everything emotional was gray.

Aphrodite sat in the last pew, staring up at the high ceiling and the pseudo-brilliant chandeliers hanging from it. Many around her were making unusual noises in an attempt to stifle their sobbing, or their perhaps lesser form of mourning, sniffling. Others were reticent. She belonged to the latter group, gazing at the event through insignificant eyes. This had been her first funeral, and the nearly tangible grief emitting from those surrounding her was very foreign. She recalled a time when one of her lovers was brutally murdered. She skipped the funeral for an affair.

Eventually everyone drifted out despondently, their heads toward their feet and their shoulders hunched. Aphrodite remained, fascinated by the previous display of emotion. She studied the husband’s movements intently. He kneeled down and spoke audibly, but she could not discern the words. As she tried to listen, it suddenly dawned on her – a god had died. No one had even known it was possible. Athena’s death sparked mass panic among the gods, for the impossible had occurred. Scholars frantically tried to formulate theories to explain the phenomenon, and after contact with certain humans, the reason was uncovered. When no one is praying to a god, the god can no longer exist. It was established that humankind kept the gods alive, not the other way around. When Aphrodite had heard the news on the day of Athena’s death (the cause of death was figured out unusually quickly), the irony stung her, but it didn’t sink in entirely until she saw the man on his knees. He was so helpless, so fragile, so hurt.

Finally he stood and walked toward the exit behind her. As he was about to pass her, he looked up and saw her, then sat beside her. She gazed into his eyes, the infamous eyes that possessed the envious color of violet, and recognized something – fear. This fear wasn’t the result of terror but the result of pain. Aphrodite had known this man for quite some time, but their conversation had never risen above small talk. Now, however, she felt herself begin to hysterically weep and grow limp, and she leaned her head against his shoulder.

A few minutes passed of this emotional release until she was taken aback. Suddenly, the man embraced her warmly and spoke two simple words in her ear: “I’m sorry.”

AtlanteanTapir · 05-10-2006, 04:59 PM

The Greedy Demon

Vernal looked out the window of his two hundred-million dollar complex. The sky was flooded with flashing thunder and dancing rain. He knew Zeus wasn’t pleased with what he was doing, but it was his choice and destiny.

~*~*~*~*~

A little way beyond the grassland, Vernal sat down on the newly soaked bench. Aphrodite’s guard would be there to meet him. The only reason a goddess would go looking for a business agent, would only be for, well, business. And gods and goddesses were hard to please. Anyhow, Vernal never turned down the offers. Two restless minutes passed, and no one came. Suddenly, the sky shone down on a spot, and a centaur galloped vertically towards Vernal. Vernal took a deep bow, and the centaur told him his job.

“Hall hi want you to do his to retrieve the lost hemerald hof the goddess hof beauty. Rise, hand hi shall provide you hone million dollars hof cash. His this clear?” “Yes.” Vernal didn’t really like the accent, but at least he understood. The centaur’s image began to shift, and it disappeared with the light. Vernal walked back to his complex, to start finding.

~*~*~*~*~

Vernal had found it, and had walked back to the old meeting place. It was a bright sunny day, not a single cloud to be seen, until when he walked there, he got shot by lightning. The centaur sighed sadly, because he had no other choice, and took the bracelet, and disappeared without a trace.

The only reason the centaur had killed the man was because he was going to kill the centaur, and get the money. They

The police found the body, and buried it in front of a chapel, where the Gods were thought to be seen.

Except the man was now a ghost, and wanted revenge, and thereof, he has turned into the demon, that haunts the chapel.

(this is actually a pretty dumb story with some kind of moral. made it up real quick.

)

eggo · 05-11-2006, 12:19 AM

Off Topic:

Based on an old welsh myth. 593 words after cutting a bit. Any more and I'll ruin it, sorry.

Off Topic:

So Chris took out the big editing stick and whacked me right in the skull. I deserved it. After supplying me with a full edit (what a guy) I re-worked it down to 500 words on the button. Thanks Chris, I'm buying

The pub was withered by time. I opened the door and walked in. A thousand years of dust had blown in the door; the dust from the bones of a million patrons past.

The bar was full, so I sat on the one seat available beside an old man with deep lines on his face and an eye patch. His body was stooped as though gravity longed to pull him back to the dirt from which he had sprung. I ordered the local ale and tried to wash the local denizen's forefathers from my throat.

The old man turned on his stool and fixed me with his good eye, brown as a spring doeskin, but the beautiful color lost in its rheumy paste of white.

"Are you gonna ask me?"

"Excuse me?" I said.

"Are you gonna ask me how I lost me eye?"

"Yes. How did you lose it?"

"T'was a long time ago…

I've sailed ships around the world and back. Seen evil men do strange things, seen creatures alive only in men's hearts, and things that would make God almighty scratch his head in wonderment.

Once I went looking for water when the ship ran low, deep into the woods on an island green as kelp in the Sargasso.

It was there I heard a noise, keen as the hunted I listened. I heard it clear, a woman crying, sobbing like someone stole her kit and left her without shoes.

I searched the woods, until I heard her from a great thorny bush. I pushed aside the brambles, and there she was, a tiny woman with butterfly wings. Her dress was caught. Gentle as I could, I pulled her out.

She clung to my hand for a moment, crying and hugging, and then fluttered off into the sun. I must of looked into the sun a might long as I got a bit teary, so I dried my eyes with my hands. The same hand that held the fairy’s tears.

Suddenly with my eye, I could see the true nature of things, the evil in folks. It helped me outta many a jam being able to look into men's and woman's souls and see the truth in them.

One day on the docks, this new captain tried to get me to sign on his ship. I looked with my eye and saw him for what he was: red skin, horns in his head and a long forked tail.

"I ain't going nowhere with you Beelzebub."

"How can you see me?" he asked.

"With me fairy eye I see ya."

He reached out and pulled it right from my head.
"And that's how I lost me eye. Do you want to know a funny thing?"

"What's that?"

"Guess what eye he took?"

I downed the rest of my beer and put a fiver on the bar. "One or the other?"

The old man's laugher filled the bar as I headed back out and onto the long dusty road.

AtlanteanTapir · 05-11-2006, 06:35 PM

Off Topic:

oohhhh..... freaky....

WiCkEd · 05-12-2006, 07:55 AM

Here goes nothing! I havent written anything in a year so this is a good warm up exercise I guess. Anyway, this a mix of horror and Egyptian mythology.

Relic

Some things you cannot help but stare at, they catch your eye and you’re transfixed. As if in a trance, Jake ran his eyes over the small statue again and again, taking in every minor detail. Every single detail was stunning: the curve of the face, the magnificent crown upon the mummified man’s head, the long flail displaying nothing but absolute power. Even the statue’s green pallor was beautiful. He had to have it. No matter what the price, he would find a way to buy it.

“How much for this,” Jake yelled over his shoulder, never taking his eyes of the odd treasure.

Jake reached forward to lift the statue from the shelf but fell a few inches short.

“Don’t touch! Not until it’s paid for!” the old man said. “It’s very old… older than you can even imagine.”

The old man who had a small tag with the name Butch written on his chest came hobbling behind Jake.

“That my friend is a genuine relic from Egypt. Do you know who that statue depicts?” Butch asked.

“No,” Jake responded. “I’ll take it though.”

“Osiris, the Egyptian god of death,” Butch said. “It is rumored that this particular statue is cursed. I received it in my drop box late one night without a note or phone call. Someone just dropped it off. Of course, after some research I found it to be quite the piece of work.”

Now it was all beginning to make a little more sense, the green paint used not for sake of uniqueness or beauty but was meant to depict rotting flesh, to show that this truly is the god of the dead.

“How much do you want for it?” Jake asked again, this time louder.

The old man shrugged and said, “Two hundred and it’s all yours.”

***

At home Jake meticulously cleaned a spot off his entertainment center for his new treasure. It went perfectly with the rest of the apartment or at least he thought so. He set the statue down and realized it felt oddly warm for an inanimate object, like there was a source of heat within it. He stared at it a moment, deep into the black eyes of Osiris. They seemed to be alive and beaming deep into his soul.

You are mine. The words burst through his mind, but he knew they weren’t his words. Jake turned to run but couldn’t move. His body wouldn’t respond. Something was wrong. Then he heard them… thousands of them. Crawling over each other, falling from the vents in the ceiling, they were every Jake looked. Large black centipedes, the biggest he had ever seen rushed out of every nook and cranny.

He finally budged and ran for the door but he slipped after only a few steps due to the puss that came out of each one crushed under foot. Within seconds he was covered. He tried to scream but he was immediately muffled as they crawled into his mouth.

FollowingShadow · 05-13-2006, 01:54 PM

Off Topic:

I'm starting to notice a pattern. It seems that the dynamic duo of ChrisMiller and eggo are consistently a force to be reckoned with.

That's a really good idea, though, peer review. As a judge I'd reccommend for any wayward reader to PM the author of a piece they noticed with their thoughts. A little pre-adjudication feedback could be just what a piece needs.

Blackhawk_t · 05-13-2006, 03:54 PM

The God That Man Forgot...on purpose

High atop Mount Montes Haemus rests the hidden remains of the once thriving dwelling of a long forgotten hero. His journey as a human, here on earth, to earn the right to join the Gods of Mount Olympus was all but forgotten. That was, until the ancient tabloids bearing his infamous powers were unearthed thousands of years later.

While traveling with his wife amongst the vast desert of Egypt, Archaeologist Leroy Enphrumpae fell into a forgotten cavern when its ceiling collapsed. As the rescue team entered, they found Enphrumpae deceased, but noted a sealed door with intricate markings. Greek Mythologist Jorge Martinez was called in to decipher the hieroglyphics etched into the door and found they were legible, but incomplete. Portions of rock had eroded away over the years, including the name of which God watched over the entrance. The chiseled carvings did reveal that a great chamber lay untouched behind the solid slab, containing countless artifacts and a detailed history of his power.

Once the seal was broken and the great door opened, a silent, but deadly gas filled the cavern, leading the helpless occupants to their excruciating demise. An autopsy performed on all thirty-two men, including Martinez, ruled the cause of death as a methane overdose.

When the chamber was finally deemed safe to enter, a second Greek Mythologist Jean Pierre documented thousands of never before seen statues and toiletries. The painted writings on the wall revealed how the God had ruled over the stench of the air. Whether it was the sour aroma of walking past herds of cattle, or the unbeknownst contests among the great Gladiators for odiferous superiority upon consuming large portions of beans. The plethora of informative and factual explanations was mind-boggling.

The greatest discovery noted by Pierre, was how his mythical powers have been handed down to mankind from generation to generation, still in use today and every female’s worst nightmare. The God was none other than Flatuclesius: God of the Foul Wind.

A team of experts from around the world are gathering as we speak to find the final resting place of Flatuclesius’ home. Pierre advised the Mythological Recovery Center of the general location and I shall report my findings as they are given to me.

Urric Arkardy · 05-15-2006, 09:55 AM

Wow, just barely made. I decided to create a few myths of my own....

In The Beginning

In the beginning, there were stars. Millions and millions of them. The first star, called Imaldris, created our world, Elendryl, and created Herus, the moon. Imaldris decreed that Herus would circle Elendryl forever as it’s guardian until the last days.

Years past and Imaldris saw no life in the world she created. So, she used part of her soul and created humans. Over time, the humans populated around Elendryl.

A faithless tyrant named Agmus the Great, conquered all of Elendryl and swore he would conquer the heavens and bring Imaldris down. Imaldris, in a fit of rage, sank the island city that Agmus created. The city of Perros was doomed among the ocean and its people were turned into demons below the seas.

The Great Spring, which lasted hundreds of years, came soon after the fall of Agmus. It was a time of rebirth. Until Agmus returned, a horrid demon that slaughtered all humans. Imaldris saw the deaths of all the humans and shed a tear. The tear froze the world and the Age of Winter began.

Very few people lived in the Age of Winter. But after a thousand years, Imaldris’s Tear unfroze and the inhabitants of the world returned. Imaldris once again banished Agmus. This time, to a high mountain, where he was dangled by his own demon’s tail over a cliff. Imaldris decreed that he would remain dangling until his eyes froze, his ears fall off from the cold, and his tongue pecked out by vultures.

Many years passed, and Enledryl had been devided by empires. One king, called King Teryl the Kind, made a pilgrimage to the High Mountain of Agmus. There, Agmus tricked the young king to releasing him from his captivity. The demon Agmus devoured the holy king and stole his crown.

The Age of Shadow had begun….

Oasis Writer · 05-15-2006, 04:00 PM

Author's Note:

Um...Unless there are any other posts, today is the deadline, so I'm calling it closing time right now, until Hodge can do it himself. No more. Buzzer! Thank you all, for those who did post. Scores will be up....sometime next week, Monday, I think. Till then, everyone settle.

Off Topic:

Hodge, you're the bossman on this one, close the thread

Hodge · 05-15-2006, 09:49 PM

I'm no moderator...

This maneuver is officially closed. Scores will be posted on the 24th.