**Update**
-Eden
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(Image courtesy of ClipArtEmail.)
Vengeance of the Sun God
Daedalus let the rope slip quickly over the window sill. He had saved weeks of his rations and packed them along with valuable tools to trade for additional supplies for his son Icarus. The young man and supplies were now on the opposite side of the rope disappearing into the darkness below. Daedalus sent his son on an impossible task: find feathers from the wings of the mythical giant eagle so both father and son could escape from the prison of King Minos.
There were no giant eagles, Daedalus knew, but Icarus refused to escape without his father. The long years Daedalus spent engineering the labyrinth below the city of Crete had taken its toll. There was no way he could manage an escape from the island, so he created a design for magnificent wings that could carry him on the wind across the sea to Greece. The design was scientifically sound, and it was easy to convince Icarus that giant eagles existed. The search would take the boy far away from the prison tower and keep him safely away from their enemies. Icarus was a determined boy and would not return until he found the fabled feathers, which would be never.
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Icarus traced the stories of the giant eagles to the land of India. His journey was long and arduous. He had traded all the tools his father had packed away for him, saving only the knife his father smithed for him: a large dagger, shaped to represent Zeus' thunderbolt, the tang buried into a piece of the Minotaur's horn. His remaining supplies were scant, but now he was standing on the mountain overlooking the roosting site of the giant eagles; the nearly empty bag was now a welcome supply. It had plenty of space to fill with those coveted wings.
Two young, strong eagles had breezed in on the evening air, settling to roost. As the night deepened, Icarus crept along the thick branches and slew the two eagles. As the second body fell to the rocky mountain terrain below a gleaming light appeared beside Icarus.
"What have you done?!" a throaty feminine voice cried as the light dissipated around her strong form. "Grandson, what caused you to act so unwisely? This is not the way of our clan!" It was Athena, the matriarch of the clan Metionid, and the benefactor of Icarus's father Daedalus. "Do you know who you have just slain? These corpses were Jatayu and Sampati, beloved sons of Aruna, the charioteer of Surya- the embodiment of the Sun God that serves the people of India."
"I was sent by my father. Their wings are the only way that he can escape the tower we have been trapped in," replied Icarus defiantly. "You once favored him, but now he rots in a prison, a slave to King Minos."
"Because your father's actions resulted in the loss of Aruna's sons," prophesied Athena, her stormy grey eyes boring into the sky blue eyes set in the face of Icarus, "your father will also lose his son." In a flash, Athena disappeared. Unsure of what else to do, Icarus remained committed to his quest and climbed to the base of the tree to remove the magnificent feathers that made up the wings of the Aruna's sons.
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Intermittent plinking sounds began at the window shortly after sundown. Assuming it was the clouds struggling to produce rain, Daedalus hurried across the room to close the shutters. As he reached the window, something stung his forehead. Looking down at the floor, he noticed several pebbles strewn under the window. He thrust his head out the window and looked to the base of the tower. Fortunately, Icarus saw his head extended out the window, and froze, arm cocked, ready to loose another pebble. Shocked, Daedalus quickly lowered a rope to his son.
***
The two Metionids stood atop the tower. Daedalus had affixed assorted instruments to the ramparts in order to gauge the weather. The finished wings were stored safely in a pine box waiting for the seasons to turn and bring the hearty spring wind that would carry them to Athens. Icarus watched the instruments closely. The wind toward the mainland, bringing about a barometric change. "Father, it's time," stated Icarus as he threw open the lid of his pine box. They strapped on the wings and climbed to balance on the ramparts.
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The experience was both shocking and wonderful. Wind zipped through Icarus's hair as he worked to gain control of his wings. Not too high, instructed Daedalus when he was giving Icarus ground lessons, hiding behind the ramparts struggling to remain unseen, the wax holding the feathers to the apparatus will melt. Not too low, Daedalus reminded his son before they jumped into the wind, the sea spray will weigh you down.
Icarus's confidence increased, but he remained mindful of his position between the sun and the sea. Suddenly, an odd movement from above caught his eye. He looked toward the sun, tracking the motion. When his eyes adjusted, he realized that a flaming chariot was quickly approaching him and his father. As it got closer, he saw two men within the chariot. One man driving, and the other testing the strength of his bow. The men's bodies shimmered like the heat off of desert sand. Each man was a dual image, first looking like the Greeks and the next moment sharing the facial features and dress of the Indian clans that Icarus traveled with on his quest.
The bowman drew an arrow of pure fire and aimed it at Daedalus. "This is for Aruna, my most faithful servant!" he cried.
"You slew my sons," stated the charioteer staring directly at Icarus. His face once again shifted and solidified into the face of the man who was surely Aruna. "Your father will pay with his life!"
Without thinking, Icarus banked to the left and caught a thermal pocket that sped him closer to the chariot, placing him above Daedalus. The image of Surya solidified as the arrow was loosed. Icarus spiraled out of the sky and hit the water. The weight of the wing apparatus dragged him below the waves.
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To Be Continued...
Author's Note:
The story of Sampati and Surya made me think of Daedalus and Icarus. I thought it was strange that the eagles' father would be annoyed enough at them soaring around the chariot that he would strike out at them, causing Sampati to suffer serious damage. If you want to know how they showed up in the Ramayana if they were murdered by Icarus, you'll get that part of the story during the next writing session. I've got some cool ideas about that, but it would definitely double the word count limit. The next part will be more India heavy than this one was. India has cooler creation gods, and I think they can handle reanimating a couple of sentient eagles.
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