Polyphemus' Island
Medusa slowly rose from the ground while the demigods watched her with obvious distrust. After spending the last several minutes fighting her and trying to avoid being turned into statues, it was difficult to simply lower their weapons and act as though nothing had happened.
Damon, on the other hand, calmly walked toward Medusa. The Gorgon tensed almost unconsciously when she saw him approaching, but quickly forced her body to relax. Trying anything foolish against the redhead would be pointless. Only moments earlier, she had watched him disintegrate both of her sisters with a simple glance; she didn't need another demonstration to understand the difference between them.
Damon wasn't completely sure whether Athena possessed a method of her own to restore Medusa's former appearance, but it wasn't something that really mattered. As King of the Olympian Gods, he held authority over the blessings and curses belonging to the Greek Pantheon. He could place a curse upon anyone under his domain and, in the same way, remove one that already existed. It was one of the many benefits of literally being the highest authority of the Pantheon.
Damon's hand began to glow with an intense white light as he slowly raised it toward Medusa. The snakes surrounding the woman's head writhed uneasily and even recoiled as if they could sense what was about to happen. Medusa remained completely still when the redhead's palm gently touched her forehead. "I, Damon, King of the Gods, release you from your curse," he declared firmly.
The white light immediately covered Medusa's entire body. The woman trembled as her figure began to change in front of everyone. Her scales slowly disappeared, the snakes that formed her hair dissolved within the light, and every trace of monstrosity was erased as human features began to take their place.
Quickly remembering one rather important detail, Damon created a white toga around her body before the transformation finished. Leaving her exactly as she had come into the world probably wasn't the best way to end the moment.
When the light finally disappeared, a beautiful woman stood before them. Her skin was fair, her features delicate, and her eyes were a pale shade of purple. Long hair of the same color flowed down her back, matching surprisingly well with her eyes and the white toga now covering her body.
Percy's jaw practically dropped to the floor. Only a few seconds earlier, he had been looking at a creature that could easily have appeared in one of his worst nightmares, and now an entirely different woman stood in front of him. "Whoaaa..." the son of Poseidon muttered, his eyes shining with surprise.
Annabeth slowly turned toward him and rolled her eyes. "Close your mouth, Seaweed Brain," she said before smacking him on the back of the head.
"Ow! You didn't have to hit me, Annie!" Percy complained as he brought one hand to the back of his head.
"I wouldn't have if you weren't acting like an idiot," Annabeth replied, looking away with obvious annoyance.
Percy muttered something under his breath while rubbing his head, though he wisely decided not to continue arguing.
Completely ignoring the small argument between the two demigods, Damon carefully examined Medusa, making sure no trace of the curse remained on her body. The woman, meanwhile, seemed unable to look away from her own hands. She slowly turned them in front of herself before touching her face, her cheeks, and finally her long hair, as though she needed to check several times that everything was real.
Little by little, a smile began to form on her lips until it became an expression of genuine happiness. Damon watched her reaction and, with a simple thought, created a mirror in front of her. Medusa looked up and went completely still when she saw her reflection. It had been so many years since she had last seen that face that for a moment she seemed to forget how to breathe.
"T-thank you... Lord Damon," she finally managed to say, the disbelief still painfully clear in her voice.
"It's the least I can do," the redhead replied firmly.
Athena began approaching from behind while Artemis remained beside the demigods with her arms crossed. The Goddess of the Hunt didn't have much to say about what was happening. She knew Medusa's story perfectly well, but she had never had a personal relationship with her during the time Medusa served Athena.
In fact, Artemis and the Goddess of Wisdom hadn't even shared the closeness they had now during those days. If Artemis knew Medusa at all, it was mainly because she had hunted her countless times over the centuries.
"I'm glad you're back."
Athena's voice caught Medusa's attention. The Goddess of Wisdom positioned herself beside Damon, a clear trace of guilt visible on her face. "I deeply regret making you suffer because of my own ineptitude. I have no excuse for what I did, and I am willing to do whatever is necessary to make amends," she declared as she lowered her head slightly, putting aside her pride and making it clear how serious she was... more than one person inside the cave was surprised.
Medusa was probably the most surprised of all. She knew her former patron goddess perfectly well and remembered exactly how Athena had been in ancient times: proud, stubborn, and practically incapable of accepting that someone could surpass her expectations or prove that she was wrong. Seeing her now lower her head, even slightly, and directly admit her mistake was something Medusa never expected to witness.
Even so, centuries of suffering didn't simply disappear because the goddess had decided to apologize. Medusa clenched her fists slightly as a mixture of frustration and old anger returned to her chest. "Thank you," she finally replied rather coldly.
No one said anything about the purple-haired woman's harsh tone. After learning her story, everyone there knew Athena was fortunate to receive even that much.
Damon immediately noticed the tension between them and decided to intervene. "Remember what I told you. Anything you desire will be granted as long as it is within my power, Athena's, or Poseidon's."
The certainty in Damon's voice made Medusa slowly exhale. After a few seconds, she looked back toward Athena with a serious expression and clenched her fists at her sides. "Then I want her and Poseidon to understand the pain, helplessness, and regret I felt that day."
Athena slowly closed her eyes. The request caused her hands to tense slightly, but she showed no intention of arguing. She had promised to accept the consequences of her actions, and no matter how unpleasant it was to hear what Medusa wanted, she had already decided internally that she wouldn't back down.
Artemis, however, didn't share that thought.
"Have you lost your mind?" the Goddess of the Hunt snapped as she stepped forward, glaring at Medusa furiously. "Do you understand what you're asking? You're talking about making Athena go through the same thing you suffered."
Medusa tensed at Artemis's reaction, but held her ground. After everything she had endured, she wasn't willing to withdraw her request simply because the Goddess of the Hunt was angry.
"It's alright, Artemis," Athena intervened before the situation could escalate. Her voice was serious, though her hands trembled slightly at her sides. "I accept. If this is what I must endure to begin making amends for my mistake, then I'll do it."
"Absolutely not," Artemis immediately replied as she turned toward her friend.
"Calm down, both of you," Damon said before they could begin another argument.
Every gaze immediately turned toward him. Damon looked at Athena first before returning his attention to Medusa. He couldn't deny that he understood the intention behind her request perfectly. Medusa wasn't simply looking to cause pain for the sake of it; she wanted the two people responsible to understand, even if only for a few minutes, exactly what they had done to her.
"I have a much better way to resolve this without anything needing to happen physically," Damon explained calmly. "I understand what you want, Medusa, but you also need to understand that I'm not going to allow something of that nature to physically happen to Athena or Poseidon. However..."
A small smile appeared on his face as he slightly raised one hand. "I can make them experience a sample of the fear, helplessness, pain, and everything else you felt during that moment without either of them having to suffer it physically."
Medusa watched him for several seconds, slowly processing the proposal. "They would feel what I felt?"
Damon gave her a nod.
Medusa lowered her gaze slightly before nodding as well. "Then that's fine. I have no problem with that as long as they at least understand a little of how fucked up my situation was."
"Perfect." Damon nodded in satisfaction. "Then let's get moving."
The redhead turned toward Artemis. "Take the demigods back to Camp Half-Blood."
The Goddess of the Hunt still seemed rather irritated by the entire conversation, but eventually nodded. Before she could leave, Damon spoke again. "By the way, before long you and the demigods will be traveling to Kuoh, so stay alert for when the time comes. I'm planning to give them a few gifts when the time is right."
Artemis raised an eyebrow in surprise at the news. Athena did practically the same, since Damon still hadn't had any conversation with her about his plans for Kuoh or what kind of gifts he intended to give the young demigods.
Even so, Artemis decided not to ask about it at that moment. A flash of light began forming around her as the demigods gathered nearby. Annabeth used the last few seconds to quickly approach Athena and hug her before returning to the group, while Percy, Thalia, Luke, and Selene said goodbye to Damon with small nods that the redhead returned.
A moment later, Artemis and the demigods disappeared from the cave. Damon watched the empty space for several seconds before turning toward Athena and Medusa. "Good. Now we just need to find Poseidon."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Olympus
Hades entered the throne room with his usual serious expression etched across his face as his eyes swept through the chamber. Hera and Hestia had been in the middle of a conversation, but both goddesses stopped the moment they noticed their brother approaching. It wasn't common for Hades to come up to Olympus of his own free will, so his arrival immediately caught their attention.
Hera was the first to speak, raising an eyebrow with visible surprise. "Well, this is something I wasn't expecting. The last thing I heard about you was Poseidon shouting all over Olympus that you had demigod children," the Queen of the Gods commented as a small smile appeared on her face. "So, how did it go?"
Hestia blinked and turned toward Hades in obvious surprise. "You have children?" the Goddess of the Hearth asked, though the surprise on her face quickly gave way to genuine happiness. She knew absolutely nothing about the situation, but hearing that their family had expanded again was enough to make her happy.
Hades, for his part, seemed to care very little about how much his sisters knew or didn't know. "Hmph. Correct," the God of the Underworld replied simply.
A small bead of sweat rolled down the back of both goddesses' heads at such a detailed explanation. Hades showed no intention of elaborating. "I'm looking for Damon. I know he's already returned. Where is he?"
The smile on Hera's face faltered as she noticed that Hades seemed more tense than usual. "You seem a little more exasperated than normal. Is there a problem?"
Hades remained silent for several seconds. He was clearly considering whether it was worth explaining the situation, but eventually came to the conclusion that sooner or later half of Olympus would probably find out anyway, so there wasn't much point in hiding it. "I have two of my children inside the Lotus Hotel and Casino. They've been there for several decades for reasons I'm sure both of you can infer."
Hades continued before either of them could comment. "But that isn't why I came. When I originally left my children there, they were the only two demigods inside the Casino."
"And now that I've returned for them..." Hades continued, his expression becoming even more serious. "The place is infested with demigods."
For several seconds, neither goddess responded. Hera was the first to break the silence. "Infested? Well, that wouldn't exactly be surprising considering our family, would it?" the goddess commented with a raised eyebrow. After all, if there was one thing the Greek Pantheon had never lacked, it was demigod children.
Hades narrowed his eyes slightly before getting straight to the point. "I would agree with you, but the problem is that none of those demigods belong to this Pantheon."
The room fell completely silent as Hestia stared at her brother in clear disbelief. Neither goddess needed Hades to explain further to understand why this could become a problem. The Lotus Hotel and Casino might exist somewhat removed from many of the normal rules of the world, but it was still within the territory of the Greek Pantheon, and apparently it was filled with demigods belonging to other pantheons without anyone on Olympus knowing anything about it.
Hera slowly raised a hand to the side of her forehead as she began imagining the headache that was probably coming. "Of course..." she muttered with a long sigh.