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Pandora's Box
Posted: 04 Mar 2018, 19:37
by Pandora (DELETED 10224)
It is told that Pandora was the first mortal woman to be crafted from clay by the hands of Gods. She was artfully created to not only be beautiful, but to be cunning enough to act out the vengeance that Zeus sought on Prometheus and his creations. You see, it is said that Prometheus created man, but once man became too much, Zeus, enraged, lashed out. Prometheus, becoming disenchanted with the lot that his creations were enduring, went to the heavens and stole fire. When Zeus became aware of this and the mortal’s acceptance of the stolen flame, he commanded that Hephaestus create Pandora and deliver her to Epimetheus as a bride. When he landed eyes on his bride to be, he became enraptured, and they were soon wed, where their love was pure and their hearts light.
Of course, all good things must be tainted by darkness.
This is where the stories differ. One tale states that Pandora was sent with a jar, and another, one I find more believable – claims that Hermes, the messenger of Zeus, with a heavy box, acted as a wary traveler. Noticing the condition Hermes was in, Pandora and Epimetheus allowed him to relieve himself of his burden – though he begged of them not to open the box. However, Pandora’s curiosity continued to draw her to the box. At first, she merely danced her fingers along the lock, but soon, she started to hear voices. Voices that pleaded with Pandora to release them, and so, she thought to open it just a crack so she could peek inside. It was that thin sliver of freedom that allowed the evil spirits to spring free.
They attacked Pandora and Epimetheus, who had never once felt anger, sadness or pain. Yet, with a flutter of wings and a sharp bite or sting, the pair started to fight. They didn’t notice the Furies as they vanished out of the open door or the window, their negativity and darkness released on the world. However, during this, there was one final fury, whose voice was different from the rest, one that begged that Pandora open the box one final time so that she could end their suffering. It was Pandora’s ill-fated curiosity that had lead them to their destruction, and it was that same curiosity that had her reaching once more for the box, though this time, she had Epimetheus at her side.
When the box opened, another fury emerged, this one different from the rest. Where the others had marred their pale skin with bites and stings, infuriating them, saddening them, tainting their souls – this spirit healed them, for this spirit was called Hope. Once she had cured the couple of their despair, she followed the trail of the other spirits, and where they offered darkness, she gave light.
I have always found the story of Pandora to be one of the more intriguing tales. A woman, unable to fight her curiosity, created by the Gods as an act of punishment, not only filled the world with evil, but with Hope. It is a tale of life, of darkness, and of promise. When I asked my mother why she thought to name me something so… unique, so rare, she would simply smile and say that the moment she looked into my eyes, she knew I was a gift the Gods, and she couldn’t wait to see how I, too, would change the world.
I suppose that is what has led me to Harper Rock, the city where myth and lore have come to life, and the dead walk the streets. It’s the city where magic has come to life, the city that my own coven was too terrified to step within. It’s this same city that calls to me, the city that devoured my brother with its box of secrets, and it’s this very city that I now plan to make my home.
Now all I have to do is find the box, and rip it wide open.
Re: Pandora's Box
Posted: 05 Mar 2018, 18:55
by Pandora (DELETED 10224)
“thou shall not suffer a witch to live,”
- Exodus 22:18
In the beginning, King Saul sought the Witch of Endor in hopes that she could summon Samuel’s spirit in order to help him in his war against the Philistine army. The witch went quickly to rouse Samuel from his death, only to have the prophet speak of the death of Saul and his sons. When the night turned once more to day, Saul’s sons were defeated in battle, and, according to written word, this caused Saul to be driven to suicide. There are other verses within the bible that implore those who believe in the word to use caution against divination, necromancy, or chanting.
During the 1400’s was when the witch hunts became truly common. Many were hunted in their homes and tortured into confessions of witchcraft. Thousands of suspected witches were put to death, and more than eighty percent of them were believed to be women who were in league with Satan. It was during this time that the Malleus Maleficarum was written and became one of the highest sold books – alongside the bible – as it became the authority upon with Protestants and Catholics could continue their horrible crimes among those who dared to practice.
This isn’t the worse; however, though I am certain what I speak of next is far more known than the Malleus Maleficarum or the Witch of Endor. The Salem Witch Trials began in Salem, Massachusetts in 1962, when two little girls claimed to be witches alongside their neighbors. Though more than 150 were accused, only 18 were put to death. We were strung from trees, and burned for our beliefs. We were tortured and mocked, devastated and hunted. We were beautiful and we were sick, we were filled with lust and we were in league with the devil. At least, that is what everyone believed, because they could not bring themselves to believe anything else. We frightened them.
It hasn’t gotten any easier over the years. We are no longer hunted and burned, but we do live in secrecy. We dance in the shadows, and we often practice within the night. We are still spoken of in hushed tones, and we are still condemned for our crimes, but it is not illegal. It is not execution worthy. Over time, the world grew out of their murderous hate, but still, we are looked upon as if we are evil, as if we are insane – and many of us are trapped within padded walls or medicated. We are strong, however, and we are more than the insanity or the damned that we are believed to be.
That is another reason I have found myself within Harper Rock, where the air pulses with magic. I can feel it against my skin, silken spider-webs that threatened to cocoon me. My coven dared not believe me when I sent word of the power that stole my breath, but there is something here; something strong, something dark. I cannot see it, I cannot use it, but I can sense it. I see it in the horror written in the lines of the people’s faces as they remain hunched and hurry to their homes. I saw it in the grotesque creature that stumbled into my path. There was no name for it. It was not something I have ever seen in our books, but when it looked at me, its flesh rotten and its mouth unhinged to reveal rows of crooked and broken teeth, I knew it was something magical - perhaps even demonic.
There is so much here, so many questions that must be answered, so much power that must be harbored, but I am only one girl, and I am in a world of ancient magic that I do not understand. I sent word back to my coven, I begged with them to join me, but they have turned on me. They do not understand my search, the do not understand that I will do what I must to find my brother. This city has taken him hostage, this city has swallowed him whole, and I must find the truth. I have already begun my search, his photograph shown to any who would give me the time of day. Some refused to speak to me, others scoffed and waved me off, but there was a few that sent a chill down my spine.
“I don’t know where he is, girl, but if you find him, you send him to us,” they said, and when they smiled, I saw something… off. Teeth far too sharp to be natural, but before I could so much as blink, they were gone, disappearing as if they had never existed. It was as if the world around them seemed to slow, their forms blurring, and then… I was alone in the street that had once been filled. I could not bring myself to try and find them; I did not dare to chase them down. If I found them, what would I do? There frightened me as much as they excited me. There was power in their soul and darkness in their eyes that I wanted to fall into it. I came to this city in search of answers, and I fear the longer I stay within its limits, I will find more than I have ever bargained for.
Is this why he had come here to begin with? Did he feel the same pull I did, or was he thinking to escape his past and the sins that he had committed? I cannot think that he would have left me behind without so much as a word, unless there was a reason, unless he feared something…
Am I betraying him by coming here? Or, is he somewhere, waiting for me to find him? Did he know that I would overturn every stone, dive into every darkened crevice, until I found him?
If he is within these hallowed limits, I will find him.
I have to.
Re: Pandora's Box
Posted: 06 Mar 2018, 18:21
by Pandora (DELETED 10224)
In Greek myth, it is said that Hades was the God of the Dead and the ruler of the underworld. In Egyptian lore, however, they claimed that it was Osiris. It is said that Osiris is the eldest son of Geb – also known as Earth – and Nut, or sky, who created Osiris not long after the creation of earth. The Egyptians consider him the Lord of the Underworld and Judge of the Dead, and it is told that he was a merciful God, despite the ominous notion of his titles. In this myth, Osiris was murdered by his youngest sibling – Set – only to be brought back to life by his sister – who was also his wife – Isis, who is one of the most worshipped Goddesses in Egyptian lore.
Though it was mentioned that he was a caring and generous God, there are also depictions of him as terrifying and cruel, though, some believe that over time, Set’s resentfulness is what lead to this twisted tales. It is written that Egypt became a paradise beneath Osiris’s ruling, because when he thought they were lawless, he gave them law. He sought to help his people – and this only fueled Set’s displeasure with his eldest sibling. Of course, this fuse was ignited when Set’s wife disguised herself as Isis and seduced Osiris, leading to the creation of Anubis. It was this betrayal that caused Set to murder his brother by creating a coffin fit perfectly to Osiris’s size and tricking him into laying within it, where he quickly secured it closed and tossed it into the Nile. As his body traveled down the sea, it became lodged within tree near Byblos, where the king and his wife found it.
Appeased with the sweet scent of the tree, they ordered it be cut down – and unaware of the coffin inside – they brought the tree back to the king’s palace as decoration, leaving Osiris to die within the coffin his brother created for him. Isis, in despair for the loss of her husband, traveled the Nile until she came to Byblos, where she was found and invited to the palace by the handmaidens. Disguised as an old woman, she was able to travel within the castle without worry, until she was found by Queen Astarte and forced to reveal herself after attempting to make one of their sons immortal by bathing him fire. Upon the Queen finding her, she revealed herself as the Goddess Isis, and was quickly promised anything she wanted as long as she spared them. It was then she requested the pillar – the tree they had taken – and cut Osiris from his coffin, before hiding him from Set as she brought him back to life with a potion mixed from herbs. Enraged upon finding the revival of his brother, Set forced Isis’s sister, Nephthys, to tell him where the body was kept, and once he found it, he quickly cut it into pieces and scattered the pieces across the Nile.
Once again, Isis was forced to find the pieces of her husband and put them back together, though she was unable to find the penis. It was because of the fish eating it that fish became a forbidden food in Egypt. Once she revived Osiris once more, he realized he was no longer complete, and thus could not rule over the living – so he took control of the underworld and withdrew into the afterlife. While he ruled in the dark, his wife and their son, Horus – who grew into adulthood and defeated Set, thus taking control of the world and restoring order to the chaos Set had created – ruled the living.
I always found it strange that our mother chose to name my brother after Osiris – and not follow the tradition of the Greek mythology she so loved. I scoured every tale I could about the God, but I still have yet to find what could have made her choose that path. My brother – my twin – is not someone I would consider just or fair. In fact, if I were to akin him to anyone within the myth of Osiris, it would be Set. He is resentful, angry, and volatile. He has always had darkness within him, one that my mother would fail to see or to look the other way – but he was my brother - my other half. Perhaps there is something more to the story, something that I have yet to find – or, perhaps it was something as simple as she found the name to sound better than to refer to him as Hades.
In the end, I suppose it does not matter, his name is not what created him. His choices shaped him, our circumstances molded him. He is somewhere within this harrowed city, and that is what matters. I can feel him – I can feel him more than I been able to since he disappeared. It has only been two weeks since I have graced Harper Rock with my presence, and I can already tell the power that it holds. I can already sense the danger and the chaos that is within the limits, and I can feel it threatening to expand. It’s as if it has a hold on me, as if it is threatening to choke me. There is more here, there is another story to be told, one that I cannot wait to sink my teeth into, and I am beginning to connect the pieces to the puzzle that my brother has laid out.
I feel, though, to see the entire picture – I must open my eyes completely to the hidden truth of the world.