She of all the gifts (Five minutes freewrite)

in #freewrite5 years ago (edited)

They huddle in the dark, cringing at every piercing cry coming from the horror outside. The strange unnatural yells of the beasts mingle with the sharp cries of fear and pain that, they know, come from their kin. Worse than the howls they cannot stop from their ears are the pictures their frantic minds conjure. They cannot stop those either, for they have seen the beasts, even for that one fleeting moment before they spread into their beautiful world. Men torn limb from limb, bodies covered in oozing plagues and the evil that darkens the souls of those whom the beasts are chasing.
To keep their minds off the horror outside they turn and stare in hate at the woman crouched in the farthest corner of the banquet hall. She has already cried all her tears and all that is left is the silent anguish. Incomprehension, too, for how could she understand that horrible twist of fate that had her turn from the one they all adored to the most vile creature on earth. When she was sent to this place she was the most exquisite being these people had ever seen, her beauty rivaling that of goddesses themselves. None of them had ever dreamed such pure and perfect being would one day grace their halls. They deferred to their leader who wanted her for his bride, but they all craved to touch her soft glowing skin and lose themselves in her embrace. She’d seen their lustful eyes lingering over the roundness of her full breasts and long sculptured legs, wondering what hidden treasures lie between them. But that was ages ago or thus it seems. There is no way to tell time in the great hall, where windows were hastily covered and bordered shut, although it was too late and the evil had already spread.
Even her groom looks at her in disgust and won’t sit near her or comfort her with a word. How quickly he has forgotten the artful wording of their marriage vows, which could not have been but a few hours before. She knows in her heart he feels betrayed and blames her for the horrors that have been unleashed upon the earth, but how was she to know? Although she came to them as full grown woman, her soul is was pure as that of a newborn. One that no woman has borne, for she herself is the first one. Made by the gods that bestowed upon her all the gifts in their power. She did not question the gods, for what infant dares question its parents. No one ever asked her if she accepted the fate that had already been chosen for her before she even came into being.

I

How was she to know the exquisite jar Zeus himself had placed in her hands would be the destruction of this innocent world, that knew no evil and no death? Afterwards, they said it was her fault, but they were all there eager to see what treasure was stored in the jar. Gold or precious stones. Some went so far as to imagine it might be full of the sweet nectar of the gods and they could already taste it with their hungry tongues. She lifted the lid at their behest, no matter how hard they might deny it now when they knew… now that they had seen the ugly beasts of pestilence and war flying out of the jar with cries full of glee. It was too late when they thought to put back the lid, the evil vengeance of the gods had already poisoned the earth and there was no taking it back.
And now they cower in the ruined banquet hall trying to avoid the inevitable moment when they too must face the new world waiting for them outside. She feels for them and for the suffering she had unwittingly brought upon them, but if she’d dare to speak she’d tell them of the utter despair in her own heart. They have only themselves to worry for, but she has to cry for all the children she has yet to bear as it is her children who will inherit the earth with all his ills. And it is she, Pandora, who has cursed them.

The cries outside have died down, maybe all in the city are dead and the beasts have flown elsewhere. One of the men stands up to go to the window, they need to know what lies in wait. When he passes by the grieving woman he spits on her and kicks her hard in the stomach, sending the jar flying out of her arms. The lid falls off in front of their horrified eyes. They’re all frozen, they don’t know what else to do but stare at the damn thing. A tiny creature crawls out. One wing is broken and she cannot fly like the others. They recoil from her sight, but the small timid creature makes no move to escape. She just looks at them with her big round eyes, filling their souls with hope. The stiffness in their limbs subsides and fears are locked deep inside - maybe they can survive, maybe there is hope for them.
Pandora alone starts to weep again for all her children to come. She sees them toiling and suffering and fighting among themselves, always hoping the world will be good again, if only they could slay the next enemy, if only they could conquer his lands and his women… Forever and ever…

Story written for @mariannewest's freewrite challenge, today's prompt was: tiny! Check out her blog and join our freewrite community.

Thanks for reading!

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Wow, that was very realistic. I love the description and the tiny beast in the end.

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What a dark and different twist on the Pandora myth - and the cruelty, the man kicking a woman who is down, the jar flying - this is brutal! But then it shifts: ....the small timid creature makes no move to escape. She just looks at them with her big round eyes, filling their souls with hope. And for all the cruelty, the story ends with hope. I love this!

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Wow, great #freewrite... here's another one you can tackle.

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What a beautiful representation of the pandora's box. Hope is the last thing to be lost.

It is interesting how Greek mythology places the female figure very similar to other deities such as eva for example. there will always be a little machismo and phallus cult in this whole affair.

but if I base myself on the Greek philosophy then the fact that a woman has been the generator of all the evils in the world product of the curiosity that was granted to her by the gods, gods with intentions of revenge make them human.

But the example can also be applied to the very life of any person, who never finishes to know himself, many times it is better not to scrutinize much in how it is our inner I, it is not going to make that we untie all the evils that we have inside product of our fears and accumulated rabies.

great writing, thank you for sharing this publication.

I haven't read a story about mythology in a long time. It's so refreshing!

I can feel the pain of the woman. She was innocent and punished for something she didn't know. Sitting in the corner, she can't even cry anymore.

They were greedy and wanted that box to be opened. Now it doesn't matter anymore. She is being kicked in her stomach - what a horrible thing to do. There is so much cruelty in your story.

But at the end, the tiny creature and its eyes.. there is hope for the future. It's all going to be good 😊

Great freewrite! I liked it! I like when there is a positive moment in stories 😉

Wonderful story of fiction that can have real life lesson! I have heard several times about Pandora's box though I haven't really read the story in detail. In general, it is something like this wherein the box of evil was opened.

The world seems unfair for the woman in your story which can sometimes happen in reality. People tend to be overwhelmed by emotions that no one is thinking rational anymore. What I like about your story is that little creature that shines a ray of hope for something good. The world is not drowned with evil after all.

You did very good in wrting this one. The title says five minute freewrite. I wonder if you really came up with the story in such a short time?

Oh woooow..when I was younger Greek mythology was my favorite. Not just Greek but mostly greek. I used to draw soldiers and read all the possible books aboun Poon or Troyan war. And also about Pandora's box.

Was this a submission into some specific topic or how did you came up with idea to write about this? Also, 5 minutes? Really? :D If that's the case, you're simply amazing! I don't even write a sentence under 5 minutes haha :D

And the story...well, dunno, it was pretty negative and sad one. I'm trying to do my best to avoind these emotions whatsoever. But your writing skills were pretty good to keep me engaged. That man spitting on woman was the hardest part to get over btw. It really got my blood hot..

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