Chapter 50: Argos—The Trace of Typhon (3)
Hecate dismissed Iris for a moment and began weaving magic.
Ancient runes—successors to Protogenoi sorcery—rose around her, forming a vast array.
Even Iris, long-lived, had never seen such primordial craft.
Flash.
The array was absorbed into the artifact, peeling away hidden layers.
‘Amazing. How many gods could cast like this?’
The space shed its shell, revealing a massive gate.
Carved upon it: a serpentine dragon, fused of snake and wyrm.
Iris nodded.
‘Yeah, this is beyond me.’
“We need more gods.”
“Not going in?”
Hecate, cloaked in illusion and disruption spells, blinked at Iris.
“If it fools gods, we could get hurt.”
Iris disliked pain.
***
As Iris and Hecate left to gather allies, Poseidon arrived in Argos.
The situation was graver than thought—he needed eyes inside.
Other sea gods were on standby; he had to come himself.
Especially with river gods now suspect.
Guided by Psamathe, he reached the underground auction.
If rare goods flowed freely, secrets would too.
“But it’s strange. Even with divine aid, can surface races capture sea serpents, mermaids, sirens?”
Phantasmal beasts were nearly impossible for mortals to hunt.
Fish-folk, maybe—as slaves.
But an entire army once drowned trying to catch a siren.
Sirens wielded illusions, enchantment, water mastery—especially at sea, even gods struggled.
“Odd. You’d need a future Perseus-level hero to pull this off.”
Entering, Poseidon’s first sight: reagents on the floor stalls.
He sensed mermaid scales mixed in.
He stopped a vendor packing up.
“Shopkeep, quick question.”
The vendor, annoyed, turned—ready to curse the interruption.
‘Gotta teach underground etiquette.’
Before him: a blue-haired youth, bold and noble.
The magical aura screamed aristocrat or mage—not someone a stall vendor should meet.
The vendor was wise.
“Yes, my lord? How may I help?”
“Just this reagent—mermaid scales? Absurd.”
The vendor understood: another drawn by Argos rumors.
“Lord, are you a mage from afar?”
“Yes. Came from Corinth for supplies, heard the talk.”
“Hmm… normally I can’t say, but…”
Poseidon slipped a pinch of mana-infused gold dust.
The vendor pocketed it instantly.
“Hehe… no need, but for a mage, I’ll speak.”
“They say Argos’ priests and king hunted mermaids.”
Poseidon feigned shock.
“How? Even I couldn’t.”
“They developed special magic—turns the sea into land.”
Poseidon’s confusion deepened.
“Humans did that? And sea gods just allowed it?”
The vendor shushed him at “sea gods,” finger to lips.
“Quiet. The king and nobles plan to tear down Poseidon’s temple, build Hera’s—to appease divine wrath. Security’s tight.”
“So why risk it all?”
“We small fry don’t know. Rumor says the nobles went mad eating mermaid flesh. Now merchants are dumping stock and fleeing.”
He lowered his voice further.
“Anyone with sense is running. Special info for you, mage.”
Poseidon nodded, tossing a gold nugget.
“Good intel. I’ll buy reagents and get out fast.”
“No need for this—anyway, leave soon. Argos is cursed now.”
“The king and his circle are the only ones blind…”
Poseidon nodded at the final warning and moved on.
***
Argos was full of oddities—but the ‘king and nobles’ were stranger.
“My temples are state-run—no priests. Yet they think I won’t rage over hunting mermaids, sirens, sea serpents? That demolishing my temple and raising Hera’s will appease me?”
Poseidon didn’t rage over phantasmal beasts hunted by humans.
Thetis screamed “HOW DARE YOU!!!”—but fae and land monsters occasionally succeeded.
Even with Poseidon’s ocean laws, violators existed.
Every part of a phantasmal beast granted power or potent reagents.
So Poseidon let minor issues slide—unless it involved ‘his people’.
He’d dismissed the mermaid-flesh rumor.
Mermaid meat was ‘lethal poison’ to surface races—undetoxifiable.
Eaters were cursed, hunted by merfolk for life.
“No sane human would eat it. Yet rumors spread to stall vendors… strange. Very strange.”
Testimonies from neighboring states, river gods, nymphs—and the vendor’s whispers—felt like bait.
A simple incident and rumor to draw divine attention, yet deter rash action.
“Humans, even blinded by greed, don’t touch temples.”
Cleverly linking plausible mortal/race actions to scatter godly focus.
Touching a temple shook ‘honor and authority’.
“Watch for now? Iris is frantic—must’ve found something.”
Poseidon spotted Iris rushing with Athena and Hecate—decided to observe Argos and Olympus longer.
***
Iris summoned Athena to enter the hidden space with Hecate.
“Thanks for coming, Lady Athena.”
“No. War between Lady Hera and Father Poseidon would trouble me most.”
Athena watched this crisis closely.
Her mother Metis, sister Cybele—both sea-aligned.
She owed Poseidon deeply.
(Privately, she called him “Father.”)
“Opening it.”
Hecate cast—
A serpentine curse shot out as predicted.
HISSS!
Black, liquid-like snakes—Hydra-grade poison—lunged at Hecate.
BOOM!
Athena leapt forward, deploying ‘Aegis’.
Hexagonal, translucent plates unfolded, absorbing the curse.
“Are You… okay?!”
Iris yelped, startled.
Athena and Hecate remained calm.
“Yes. Decent curse.”
“Forest or river god level.”
“Close to Aegis’ limit—could work on stronger gods.”
“Indeed. Aegis shield? What’s the highest you’ve blocked?”
“Ah… Cybele’s curse…”
Iris stared, unnerved.
A vicious curse had erupted—yet the goddesses analyzed casually.
“Wasn’t that dangerous?!”
“Not really. Ancient magic/sorcery is worse—some drive chief gods mad.”
“Father Poseidon taught me too. It hurts — he warned me to be careful.”
“…”
‘No wonder war/magic gods get cursed…’
Iris felt reassured and inadequate—urged them inside.
“Let’s go in! …After you.”
(She stayed back.)
***
The hidden chamber reeked of sulfur and chaotic flames.
“Ugh! Foul stench.”
“Sulfur and curse this potent?”
“Maybe an unknown god…”
Deeper in:
- The investigation team, bound in agony.
- Mermaids and sirens, withered but alive.
- Sea serpents reduced to ash—bones crumbling.
“Cruel god.”
“Ancient shamanism here…”
On the wall: ancient runes and one phrase.
Lauda Typhon
(Praise Typhon)