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 end 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. The Goddess Athena had blessed him with a sharp mind and dexterous hands that improved rather than degenerated with prolonged use. Unfortunately, the prowess bestowed in that gift did not extend to his shoulders, back, and legs. He now moved like an elderly man; back hunched, shuffling gait.
Icarus was nearing manhood. There was no way the boy could build a meaningful life trapped in a tower. No Cretian father would allow his daughter to be betrothed to the son of the highest guarded prisoner of King Minos. Daedalus had to get Icarus off the island. King Minos kept the tower heavily guarded and departing ships were heavily watched by Minos's guards to ensure even if prisoners managed to escape their holdings, they could not flee the island. Sailing a handmade raft from the rocky shore of Crete, for an average man, would be suicide. Daedalus had the knowledge and Icarus had the skill to create a sea hearty craft, but because of his condition, Daedalus could not escape the tower. Even if he could, the two could not realistically build a vessel without being caught by the Cretian guards. Divinity seemed to agree with Daedalus's desire to get Icarus off the island. One late night after Icarus had retired, A soft knock came at the door to the living quarters. When Daedalus opened the door, he found a familiar guard standing behind a hooded figure. Daedalus moved to the side and allowed the two to enter. Once the door closed, the hood dropped to reveal Queen Pasiphaë, wife of King Minos and the reason Daedalus was imprisoned in the tower. "I know I can never make up for how my choices have affected you," she began, eyes cast down, guilt making it impossible for her to meet Daedalus's gaze, "but I hope you will consider what I am about to propose and accept it, for the very least, as compensation for your honorable service to me. I was a lustful fool." Her cheeks reddened as she glanced at Daedalus to make sure that he was listening. "You tried to warn me off of Poseidon's advances. When Poseidon arrived at court in the disguise of the white bull, you tried your best to make me see the folly in my desires. Yet, as a good attendant should, you acquiesced and built the wooden structure that allowed me to couple with Poseidon in his bull form. An act that doomed us both." "It doomed more than the two of us," replied Daedalus. "Both of our sons are prisoners. Yours within the labyrinth, and mine here in this tower." "Yes. That is what I have come to discuss with you. Icarus has begun catching the eye of my maidservants. He is on the cusp of manhood and should begin seeking his fortune. He cannot do that here, trapped in a tower." "I am well aware of the fact that my son is near the end of his adolescence and the limitations this tower places on his options," snapped Daedalus. Pasiphaë pressed on in spite of the anger in his voice. "I have arranged for a ship to wait just beyond the horizon five days from now. Icarus will meet my mother, Perse, in an inlet that is seldomly used. I received a Hippocampus foal as a gift from Poseidon when he first began courting me. The creature lives with my mother in the court of Oceanus. She and the creature will transport Icarus safely to the ship."
***
In order to get Icarus to agree to leave the island, Daedalus has to employ a well-crafted ruse. 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. Eventually, the boy's supplies would run out and he would have to take on a trade. Hopefully, he would meet a girl and her charms would convince Icarus to focus on his trade, build a family, and forget about Daedalus and the tower. |
***
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 feathers.
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.
***
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. He saw a shadowy form standing below; arm cocked, ready to loose another pebble. Shocked, Daedalus called to the form, "Icarus?" The form froze, saving Daedalus from the sting of another projectile.
"Yes, Father! I'm back and I have so much to tell you!" responded Icarus. Daedalus quickly lowered a rope to his son.
"Yes, Father! I'm back and I have so much to tell you!" responded Icarus. 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 shifted toward the mainland, bringing about a barometric change. "Father, it's time." Icarus threw open the lid of his pine box. The duo strapped on their wings and climbed to balance on the ramparts.
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." Later, standing on the ramparts; "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!"
The wings seemed to come to life and shifted expertly causing Icarus to bank to the left. A thermal pocket caught the wings and they snapped wide, speeding him closer to the chariot, placing him above Daedalus. The image of the bowman 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.
***
To Be Continued...
*Author's Note:
The story of Jatayu and Sampati, Sons of Aruna: The two young vultures enjoyed racing each other each day. One day as they were racing, they annoyed their father Aruna, the charioteer of Surya the Sun God. Aruna sent a scorching ray to punish his sons. Sampati raced above Jatayu and shielded him from the blast. Sampati fell to the earth. Unable to fly because he was severely disfigured, Sampati lived in a cave by the shore on the southern tip of India.
I didn't understand why Aruna would scorch his sons just for being annoying. I mean, I'm a human and I manage to not maim my children when they annoy me. I decided to blend this story with the story of Daedalus and Icarus.
The stories surrounding Pasiphae and the bull differ on whether the bull was just a bull or if it was Poseidon in a bull form. It makes sense to me that the only reason Pasiphae would lust for the bull was if she was already lusting for King Poseidon. Pasiphae is the entire reason why Daedalus and Icarus are in the tower, so I felt she should be responsible for finding a way out.
The hippocamus is a race of sea monster that has the front of a horse and the back of a fish. Hippocampi draw the chariot of Poseidon.
***I chose the references below because they explain the parts of the myths that I drew from in a better way than Wikipedia or Britannica did and some of them have really cool pictures.
*Author's Note:
The stories surrounding Pasiphae and the bull differ on whether the bull was just a bull or if it was Poseidon in a bull form. It makes sense to me that the only reason Pasiphae would lust for the bull was if she was already lusting for King Poseidon. Pasiphae is the entire reason why Daedalus and Icarus are in the tower, so I felt she should be responsible for finding a way out.
The hippocamus is a race of sea monster that has the front of a horse and the back of a fish. Hippocampi draw the chariot of Poseidon.
***I chose the references below because they explain the parts of the myths that I drew from in a better way than Wikipedia or Britannica did and some of them have really cool pictures.
Bibliography
Icarus https://www.greekmythology.com/Myths/Mortals/Icarus/icarus.html Apollo https://apollogreekmyth.weebly.com/areas-of-rule-and-weaponspowers.html Helios https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helios#Conflation_with_Apollo
Athena's Weapon https://sophia-nick-athena.weebly.com/tools-weapons-or-attributes.html
Pasiphae https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pasipha%C3%AB
Jatayu https://www.giantbomb.com/jatayu/3005-19521/
Sampati https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampati
Aruna https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aru%E1%B9%87a
Surya https://www.ancient.eu/Surya/
Pasiphae https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pasipha%C3%AB
Jatayu https://www.giantbomb.com/jatayu/3005-19521/
Sampati https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampati
Aruna https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aru%E1%B9%87a
Surya https://www.ancient.eu/Surya/
