Apple of Discord: Chapter 3

“Well done, demigod! A piece of the Apple of Discord,” Grey coos, warmly.

“Yeah, but is it? It’s kind of hard to tell,” you ponder out loud. “It keeps shifting form, even with Mr. D’s belch... uh, blessing.”

‘But you can sense its power?” Grey asks, flatly.

“Oh, for sure. It must have made it super easy for Nero to hide the pieces. They could fit in just about anywhere.” 

You watch the Apple piece shift in an unsettling way in your hand as if it can’t decide what it wants to be.

Sweatband
Empty coffee mug
Roll of toilet paper
A small bag of Cheetos

On and on it goes. The relative weight of each object it transforms into changes as well. Clever, you think.

You look back up as you feel the weight of Grey’s attention on you.. You’ve also noticed that Grey sounds a bit condescending since you came back victorious.

“Where is Cat? I notice she didn’t arrive here with you.,” Grey sounds downright imperious now.

“What are you saying? I did EVERYTHING she asked me to! It’s not my fault!” How dare Grey accuse you of…

“Of course…” Grey begins.

“Of course, what?” you snap. “Of course, it’s my fault?” You are red hot with anger. 

It’s bad enough you couldn’t help Cat.

You feel a little embarrassed and angry that you were scared in the fight.
You didn’t train hard enough.
You aren’t a good student, much less a demigod hero.
So clumsy and awkward!
You miss your friends.
No one listens to me.
My voice doesn’t matter, you want to scream.

This is stupid.
People are idiots.
The gods don’t care about us.
When will this end? 
There is no hope.

And there it is.

Tears well up in your eyes.

Your chest burns.

“Of course it’s not your fault, demigod!” Grey doesn’t sound angry or accusatory to you anymore. “That’s the Apple talking. It’s okay to feel everything you’re feeling. Just try to remember all of your fears and insecurities are normal.

Unfortunately, the Apple pieces amplify them and bring them to the front of your mind. It’s a staggering weight, and it’s going to get worse the more pieces you recover. I know you can bear that weight, but I’m so sorry you have to. You won’t be alone in this, ever.”

The Apple piece slides out of your hand and on to the floor. You feel some of the dark stickiness of those hopeless thoughts melt away as if a shaft of brilliant sunlight melted them in a sort of divine banishment.

Your emotions are jangled and sparking. It’s hard to focus. Your body isn’t sure if it should be sobbing or hopeful or both. 

“Is there s-some kind of magical insulator for those things?” you sputter. “Something to lessen its effects?”

“Great question, demigod!” Grey chirps, then adds, “No. Nothing we know of. Can you imagine what the whole Apple of Discord would do today?”

“Not helping,” you reply dryly, rolling your eyes. Then you think better of it. The whole apple is going to have to be dealt with in the very near future. “Wait, let’s talk about that important bit of trivia.”

“There is precedent for worry, demigod. The Apple is so powerful it can affect the gods too,” Grey states in a flat tone. “It sparked jealousy amongst the Olympians and ended up spreading into the mortal world as an epic war. Thanks a lot Eris and Lord Hermes! The gods took sides in the Trojan War and fought one another in a spectacularly violent fashion. That’s all light reading, these days. No big deal.”

Your mind immediately wanders to the dark and ridiculous as you wonder if the Trojan war is where the term “dragging someone” comes from. Too soon? you wonder. Nah. Stay bleak, my friends. Demigod life!

“Do I wonder if what is too soon?” Grey asks. “Stay bleak... my friends? It’s only me here.”

“Sorry! I didn’t realize I said that out loud.” Yikes. I might be losing it after all, you think to yourself.

“I was wrong, That wasn’t you. Someone is sending me a message.” Grey dismisses your previous nonsense. “Maybe you’re not losing it after all.”

Okay, that was spooky.   

The BELCH activates, swirling like a mini-hurricane. You watch intently as a face resolves inside the portal.