A/N Written for Round 7 of the Small Fandom Big Bang, and also for Hurt/Comfort Bingo for the 'Stranded/Survival Scenario' prompt.
Please go and check out the lovely artwork by MistressKat on AO3 where the art is integrated into the story, and give the artist some appreciation too :-)
The early morning sun streamed down through the leaves of the trees to throw dappled light onto the ground below. This early in the day, the air was still cool enough to be comfortable, yet it held the promise of being stiflingly hot later on. The only sound was the gentle rustling of leaves and the sweet song of the birds. Gradually though, another sound began to intrude itself on the peace of the scene: the sound of feet moving through the trees and of quiet chatter. Finally, two young men came into view, wandering through the trees. Whilst it was clear that they weren't walking aimlessly, they also weren't hurrying along.
"How do we always seem to let this happen?" Jason demanded, slashing crossly at a bush with a long, whippy stick he had picked up from somewhere.
Pythagoras looked at him an amused grin, eyes sparkling.
"It is because you simply have to help anyone that comes to you asking for it," he pointed out, "and I have never yet managed to say no to Hercules."
"Yeah but even so…" Jason said.
"Besides," Pythagoras went on, "Hercules was right: we do need to earn some money or we will go hungry."
"He could have come to help though!" Jason grumbled.
"To be fair, he was right about that too," Pythagoras replied with a grimace. "This really is a two man job and since he was offered that guarding job too, it made more sense for him to stay in Atlantis and do it. That way we will have a little reserve of cash to tide us over."
Jason grunted.
"As long as Hercules doesn't drink or gamble it away," he said.
"I will endeavour to make sure that we get our share and Hercules does not claim all the pay," Pythagoras answered, the corners of his mouth twitching into a smile. "I will hide my share away where he cannot find it."
"Not under the floorboards in your chamber," Jason advised. "He knows about that hiding place."
"How does…" Pythagoras began, sounding a little startled. "Never mind," he added with resignation. "I am not sure I wish to know."
His eyes sparkled with amusement.
"Actually I believe I have come up with the perfect hiding place for our spare money," he said.
"Where?" Jason asked. "Because he's always found it before now."
"I was thinking of hiding it in amongst my mathematical equipment," Pythagoras answered. "I do not believe Hercules would ever look there. You know how he feels about my work and my triangles after all."
Jason chuckled, his face transforming from a grumpy expression into his more usual sunny smile.
"That should work," he agreed with a grin. "I can't see Hercules rooting through there of his own accord."
"Precisely," Pythagoras replied. "And you have to admit, getting a job was a good idea."
"I know," Jason admitted, casting his mind back to the previous morning.
The day was only just beginning – the street traders only just setting up their stalls in the agora and surrounding streets – when Hercules stumbled in through the door of the house he shared with his two younger friends. How he had made it home and up the stairs in the state he was in was anyone's guess; one of those mysteries that perhaps weren't meant to be solved.
Pythagoras, coming out of his room in search of breakfast, stopped and looked at him in surprise. Hercules was not known for being an early riser.
"You are up early," the young genius observed. "Or is it late?" he added, his tone hardening as he saw his friend swaying on his feet.
Hercules ignored him and stumbled across to a cupboard on the wall. He lifted the lattice door that closed the front and started rooting about inside (although it wasn't clear what he was searching for) before giving up and letting the front drop back down, narrowly avoiding his own head. He turned to face Pythagoras, lurching as he did but managing to keep his feet somehow.
"You are drunk," Pythagoras accused.
"I may have had one or two tiny drinks," Hercules slurred, "but I was negotiating with Idas the merchant…" he paused and scratched his belly. "I was negotiating… and then I was celebrating."
Pythagoras sighed.
"I know I will regret asking this but what were you negotiating?" he asked, starting to clear and clean the table.
"We need money. Somebody in this house needs to get a job," Hercules announced.
"As I have been telling you for some time," Pythagoras retorted.
"Iss important," Hercules declared, his speech becoming ever more slurred. "We need money. We need food."
He belched loudly just as Jason came in from the street, jug of water in one hand and a fresh loaf of bread tucked under his arm.
"Morning," Jason said, making his way across the room and putting the things down on the table. "Charming!" he added with a grimace, waving a hand in front of his face as Hercules farted.
"You have been to the market already?" Pythagoras asked. "Jason, you are a star."
He wasn't completely sure what the phrase meant but he had heard Jason use it many times when he was happy about something that one of his friends (usually Pythagoras) had done, so surmised that it was something good. From Jason's pleased smile, he knew he had been correct.
"I have got us a job," Hercules proclaimed. "Ooh breakfast," he added spotting the bread on the table and beginning to lumber unsteadily towards it.
"A job?" Jason asked.
"What sort of job?" Pythagoras said suspiciously at the same time.
Hercules, attention diverted by the bread on the table, ignored him and reached out one meaty hand to grab the food. Being very drunk (and still quite a long way from the table) he missed, his hand closing on thin air. He frowned, growled to himself, lurched sideways and tried again.
"Hercules," Pythagoras said, stepping between his burly friend and the table, effectively blocking the food from sight. "I asked what sort of job?"
Hercules stopped and stood swaying on the spot. He blinked owlishly at his friend.
"Iss a good job!" he declared. "A re-e-eally good job! 'Ss good!"
"Yes but what sort of job?" Pythagoras asked with exaggerated patience.
Hercules frowned in confusion and blinked at him again. Then, like a great tree toppling, he passed out, falling flat on his face on the floor.
His two friends came and stood over him, looking down at him.
"Just a few more paces and he would have actually made it to his own bed," Jason observed with a rueful grin.
"Wake up, you drunken fool," Pythagoras said loudly, giving Hercules' inert form a light kick to try to wake him up. "I am ashamed to call you my friend."
Hercules didn't stir.
Pythagoras knelt down beside him.
"Hercules," he called, slapping the burly wrestler across the face. "Come on! Wake up!"
Hercules grumbled in his sleep but didn't wake.
Pythagoras looked up at Jason with exasperation.
"I cannot wake him," he said. "We will have to carry him to his bed."
"Don't we always?" Jason asked with a snort.
It was an amused snort rather than a sign of anger though – and he was right, they had carried Hercules to bed far too many times (although it was usually in the middle of the night when the older man came stumbling in and woke them both up).
Pythagoras rolled his eyes and made one last effort to wake Hercules up using techniques that he had tried in the past with varying degrees of success.
"Hercules!" he called, patting his friend's face forcefully as he pinched the big man's nose closed. "Hercules! Wake up!" He punctuated his final words with a sharper slap across Hercules' face.
Hercules snored loudly in response.
Pythagoras sighed.
"Nothing doing," he said to Jason. "I simply cannot persuade him to stir."
"Come on then," Jason answered. "Let's get him into bed."
He crouched down next to the burly wrestler and dragged one of Hercules' arms across his shoulders, as Pythagoras did the same on the other side. With a lot of grunting and straining, the two young men managed to get to their feet with Hercules held between them, and dragged their corpulent friend across the room to his own chamber. Jason kicked the door open with one foot and they hauled Hercules over to the bed, dropping him there gratefully.
"So what do you think he was talking about?" Jason asked Pythagoras, glancing down at their drunk friend. "What sort of job do you think he's found?"
"I do not know," Pythagoras responded. "Although, going on past form, I cannot think it will end well. He is not always as discerning as he should be when agreeing to take on jobs… particularly when money and alcohol have been involved." He looked appraisingly at the burly wrestler. "He once agreed – while drunk I might point out – to deliver a love token to Rhoda, the daughter of Andreas the wine merchant."
"It didn't go well?" Jason asked, as they crossed the room to leave.
"Oh no," Pythagoras replied. "He managed to deliver it without incident – there was only one problem…"
"What was that?"
"He delivered it to Rhode, the woman who cleans out the drains in Chremonides' bath house, not Rhoda… and she thought it was from him! She pursued him for months… and he never did get paid, given that he'd delivered the love token to the wrong woman and all that," Pythagoras responded with a laugh. "He could not get Rhode to leave him alone no matter what he did. She was convinced that he was her true love and was going to marry her. We ended up having to take a job in Pathmos just to get away from her… and for a while it looked as though he would have to leave Atlantis forever to rid himself of her."
"She wasn't his type then?" Jason asked with a grin.
The thought of Hercules being chased by a woman that he wasn't interested in amused him; from the stories Hercules told of his exploits with women, it hardly seemed possible after all.
"She had no teeth," Pythagoras replied, "and the worst breath I have ever had the misfortune of smelling. Since she spent all day clearing the drains, she made Hercules smell positively sweet. What was worse, though, was that she was already the wife of Blathyllos… and he has the worst temper in Atlantis and an unbeaten record in the arena. He is also terribly jealous and if he had even for a moment imagined that Hercules was pursuing his wife… well…"
"I can imagine," Jason answered, chuckling. "How did Hercules get out of it?"
"He was considering faking his own death," Pythagoras said, unable to hide his amusement at the memory.
"Let me guess, he was going to grow a beard and flee the city?" Jason responded.
The two young men laughed as they caught each other's eyes; both of them knowing only too well what Hercules' usual suggestion in the face of any crisis was. Pythagoras poured two cups of water and made up two plates with bread and a few olives on for himself and his friend, before joining Jason at the table.
"Of course," he replied. "Fortunately for him, Blathyllos took a job in Helios and moved himself and his wife there before Hercules was forced to do anything drastic." He cast an amused glance at the door to the burly wrestler's chamber. "I suspect we will have to wait until he is conscious again to discover what he has got himself into this time," he added.
"And us," Jason pointed out. "He said the job he had agreed to was for all of us."
"Indeed," Pythagoras said. "But since it is unlikely we will learn anymore about it until Hercules awakes I would suggest that it would be a good idea to eat breakfast and not worry about any potential job yet."
It was much later in the day when Hercules finally got up again; the Sun had risen high in the sky and crossed over into early afternoon. The burly wrestler half staggered out of his chamber, extremely hungover, desperately thirsty and feeling the need for some wine to take the edge off his headache, to find Pythagoras calculating something at the table and Jason puttering around in the background doing something that might have been vaguely domestic but in his diminished state, Hercules wasn't quite sure.
As Hercules dropped down onto a bench at the table, Pythagoras looked up and pushed a cup towards him. Hercules grunted and took it, downing the contents in one swift gulp.
"Urgh!" he protested. "That was not wine!"
"No," Pythagoras replied. "It was water."
Hercules frowned deeply.
"I need wine!" he declared.
"No," Pythagoras retorted primly. "You do not! You are undoubtedly dehydrated and require water. Wine is the last thing you should be drinking right now."
Hercules retreated into a cross grumble, head pounding a little too much to shout at his friend (however much he might want to). Jason finished whatever it was he was doing and came to sit opposite Hercules, next to Pythagoras. Both young men looked expectantly at their older friend.
"What?" Hercules demanded, unnerved by the way they were looking at him.
"So what's the job?" Jason asked.
"What job?" Hercules sounded baffled. "What are you talking about?"
"The job you said you had taken on our behalf?" Pythagoras said patiently.
"You know, the one you volunteered us for without actually bothering to check it was alright with either one of us?" Jason chimed in.
Hercules still looked blank.
"You stumbled in here shortly after dawn, so drunk you could barely see straight and informed us you had found us all a job but passed out before you could tell us what the job entailed," Pythagoras stated.
Hercules blinked for a moment, his fuzzy brain taking time to catch up with what Pythagoras had been saying.
"Oh!" he said. "The job! Yes… I was going to tell you all about it."
He lapsed into silence again, blinking blearily at the cup he was holding. His two friends exchanged a frustrated glance.
"Hercules, what is the job?" Pythagoras sounded exasperated.
Hercules looked up in surprise.
"I didn't tell you?" he asked.
"No!" the two young men said in unison.
Jason rolled his eyes at Pythagoras, who shook his head in return.
"When I went to the tavern last night, I was talking to Balius," Hercules said as though that should explain everything.
"Who?" Pythagoras asked.
"You must know Balius," Hercules objected. "One eye; lives just down the street from 'The Tipsy Goddess'?"
He was met with a pair of blank looks.
"'The Tipsy Goddess'?" he said incredulously. "The finest tavern on the north side of Atlantis? Well… the finest tavern near the northern gate anyway..."
"Hercules, I do not have your intimate knowledge of all the drinking establishments in Atlantis," Pythagoras interrupted sharply. "And what has this got to do with the job you have accepted anyway?"
"Well like I said I was talking to Balius," Hercules began. "I cannot believe that you don't know Balius, Pythagoras. He is fonder of goats than any man I have ever met. I've known him years. Oh… very funny story how we met actually…"
He trailed off when he saw the twin exasperated looks that were being sent in his direction.
"Another time?" he asked, a little hesitantly.
Pythagoras grimaced and nodded.
"The job, Hercules," he said. "What is the job?"
"I was just getting to that," Hercules protested.
"It's taking you long enough," Jason muttered, just audibly enough that Hercules heard and shot him an irritated glare.
"Anyway, as I was saying," the burly wrestler said, "I was talking to Balius last night and he happened to mention that Idas the merchant was looking for a couple of strong and trustworthy men to do a little job for him… and I thought, who's stronger or more trustworthy than me?"
His friends looked at each other for a second and sniggered, trying to restrain their laughter so as not to offend Hercules too much.
"So I went and offered our services to Idas," Hercules went on, ignoring the two young men. "The negotiations were long and hard and went on well into the night but eventually I persuaded him that we were the men for the job."
"You still have not told us what the job is," Pythagoras pointed out sharply. His eyes narrowed. "I am beginning to think that there is something about it that you wish to hide from us," he added suspiciously.
"No!" Hercules protested, his hand pressed melodramatically over his heart. "How could you think such a thing, Pythagoras? Shame on you!" He shook his head solemnly, his expression mournful. "When have I ever tried to hide something from you or let you down?"
"Very frequently," Pythagoras sniped. "And I think you should tell us the worst now."
"There is no worst," Hercules retorted. "It is a nice simple, straightforward job. You see Idas was travelling back from Pathmos a few weeks ago when he was forced to take shelter overnight in a ruined building no more than a few hours from here in the forest. He was alone – which to my mind is insane and asking to be robbed – but he thinks he's less likely to be attacked if he looks poor enough. Anyway, he was in this building and he could hear all sorts of noises. He got himself all worried and fancied he heard bandits but I reckon what he heard was probably just the normal sounds of the forest. Because he was panicking, he buried part of his cargo meaning to go back for it. Only, Idas is of a somewhat nervous disposition and doesn't want to risk it but he can't afford to lose so much of his cargo either. He is willing to pay – and pay well – for someone to go and fetch it for him."
"That actually sounds alright," Jason said. "When do we leave?"
"I told Idas that you boys would leave today," Hercules said, smiling with satisfaction.
"What do you mean 'you boys'?" Pythagoras demanded suspiciously. "Surely you are coming too? I cannot believe you would have taken a job on our behalves and not intended to take part yourself."
"Ah," Hercules said awkwardly. "That's the thing… I'd love to come with you lads, but I can't."
"Can't or won't?" Jason asked acidly. "Let me guess, there's a beetle race that you just can't miss tonight."
"How can you think that of me?" Hercules protested. "Have I ever done anything like that before?"
His two young friends looked at one another before looking back at him.
"Yes," they both said.
"All too often," Pythagoras added.
"It's not like that at all," Hercules said, choosing to ignore their comments. "Idas needs someone to guard the cargo he has here too. Now I know you don't enjoy guarding," he looked straight at Jason. "You once told me that you nearly died of boredom… so I, out of the goodness of my heart, volunteered to do that bit myself. I hope you'll think of me when you're out enjoying yourselves and I am stuck on guard duty all night."
"So where is this ruined building?" Pythagoras asked. "And what is the cargo we are supposed to be retrieving?"
"A small casket of jewels," Hercules answered quickly. "Idas is a jewellery maker. He was bringing stones that he had bought in Pathmos back to turn into jewellery for the nobles at court. He buried it at the foot of the third pillar base from the doorway, on the left-hand side of the room. All you need to do is go and dig it up and bring it back here. As for the building itself… well, I am not entirely sure what it was, but it is North of the ruined palace at Cynus…"
"Isn't that where we met Prince Therus?" Jason asked.
"The very same," Hercules answered. "So you'll have no trouble finding it. The building that Idas sought refuge in was in a small valley a short distance on from there."
"Hercules, that is in the heart of bandit country," Pythagoras pointed out.
"I haven't heard tell of any bandit attacks in that area for months," Hercules replied. "It should be no trouble for the two of you. We have faced worse than a few bandits after all. Like I said, a nice simple, straightforward job."
Pythagoras looked at him and sniffed.
"If there is one thing I have learned over the years we have been friends, Hercules," he said, "it is that the jobs you take on are rarely simple and never straightforward."
"You do know that he volunteered to do the guarding so that he would be near the tavern and wouldn't have to expend too much effort, don't you?" Jason said, quirking an eyebrow at Pythagoras.
"Of course," Pythagoras replied. "I have known Hercules for too many years not to be wise to his tricks." He paused and looked around. "It is strange not to hear him complaining about something as we travel," he mused. "Still, with luck we will meet with no trouble and be back in Atlantis by tonight."
They had set out in the late afternoon the day before and spent the night in the hunting lodge where they had once arranged for Ariadne to meet with her brother. It had been nice not to have to sleep out in the open while they were away from Atlantis for once. Although Hercules was expecting them home this evening, neither Pythagoras nor Jason felt any particular need to hurry; there was plenty of time after all.
"How much further do you think it is?" Jason asked.
"I do not know," Pythagoras answered, "but I cannot imagine it will be much further. We passed the palace ruins some miles back after all."
Jason grunted and peered thoughtfully into the trees. They hadn't seen any hint of thieves in their journey through the mountains so far but that didn't mean there weren't any lurking in the trees, waiting for unsuspecting travellers to attack. To the right, something caught his eyes and he found himself stopping and peering a little harder through the trees.
"What is it?" Pythagoras asked.
"Over there… is that a building?" Jason asked.
Pythagoras squinted at what Jason was pointing at.
"Maybe," he said dubiously. "It is a little hard to tell at this distance. It might just be part of the mountainside."
Hitching up the bags that they each carried to be a little more comfortable, they followed the path through the trees. It gradually curved towards the right, meandering through the trees towards the possible building Jason had caught sight of.
The two young men chatted as they walked; light banter (mainly at Hercules' expense) or quiet confidences; stories of the past (mainly from Pythagoras) or current interests (Pythagoras again – his triangles were endlessly fascinating to him).
The path began to descend steeply and they found themselves having to concentrate more on where to put their feet; it would be all too easy to trip or turn an ankle here. Conversation dwindled briefly until the path flattened out again as they reached the bottom of a valley. Cliffs reared up either side of them.
"You were right," Jason said, looking at the cliffs. "It wasn't a building that I saw."
The path turned sharply to the left. As they rounded the bend, the two men stopped still and stared. Ahead of them was a lake, it's waters perfectly still and crystal clear, split by a causeway that carried the path they stood on to the doorway of what must have once been a stunning building. It was roofless now, and here and there the walls were beginning to tumble down, but remnants of former glory remained; the frieze at the top of the colonnade, although crumbling in places, was finely sculpted and remnants of the bright paintwork could still be seen. The building wasn't as vast as the palace at Cynus had been but was still enormous. Jason turned to Pythagoras with a faint frown.
"That is a bit grander than we were told," he said softly.
"Indeed," Pythagoras replied. "I cannot help but wonder that Idas did not describe it more fully to Hercules. Calling it a ruined building in a little valley hardly does either the building or the setting justice."
"It makes me wonder what else he might have left out when he was talking to Hercules," Jason said, looking sideways at Pythagoras.
"Yes," Pythagoras agreed, looking at the building again.
"What do you think this place was?"
"Given the fact that it was once clearly high status and its proximity to Cynus, I would have to suspect that it was once a temple of some description," Pythagoras answered. "Although I could not tell you which of the Gods it is dedicated to until we get closer. The position near the lake would indicate Poseidon but there are other possibilities. I know that Poseidon is the preeminent God who we worship within Atlantis, but all the Gods are revered and there are other temples within the city walls dedicated to the other Gods."
Jason grunted in response.
As predicted, the morning had become stiflingly hot without even the hint of a breeze and a bead of sweat trickled uncomfortably down between Jason's shoulder blades. He looked longingly at the still, clear water of the lake.
"Come on," he said to Pythagoras. "We should probably go and do what we came here to do before I decide to jump into that lake to cool off."
"It does look inviting," Pythagoras acknowledged. "Although it would perhaps be best not to dive straight in without knowing what might be in the water. Many things can live beneath the surface of a seemingly clear lake and I have known instances when the most inviting stream or pool turned out to be poisoned." He paused and looked at the far bank. "That being said, I do not believe that to be the case here." He pointed to the far side where a doe had picked her way down to the water's edge with her fawn. Both were taking a long drink. "If water is tainted the local animals will not drink," he observed, "so I believe this must be safe."
Jason rolled his eyes good-naturedly at his friend's earnest observations.
"Come on, let's go," he said. "The sooner we have the casket, the sooner we can get home."
Together they crossed the causeway to the building. There seemed no need to be overly cautious; they hadn't seen any evidence of anyone else in the vicinity after all. As they drew near to the colonnade, Pythagoras slowed down, looking up at the frieze.
"I was right," he said triumphantly. "It was a temple. See there? The cuckoo and the pomegranate motifs? This was a temple dedicated to Hera."
"The wife of Zeus?" Jason asked.
Pythagoras beamed. Given Jason's sometimes patchy and sporadic knowledge of the pantheon, he was always pleased when his friend demonstrated unexpected understanding of the world they lived in. It confused him, actually, how Jason could seem relatively intelligent at times (most of the time if he were being honest) and yet so utterly clueless at others.
"Yes," he replied. "The Queen of Heaven." He hesitated for a moment before continuing. "We should take care to do nothing in this place that might offend the Goddess. Hera is not forgiving of those she feels have wronged her and her wrath can be terrible indeed. It is said that even Zeus fears her temper."
"Really?" Jason asked sceptically.
"Oh yes," Pythagoras confirmed. "Zeus has had many mortal lovers. There are… stories – a great many stories – about the fates of these lovers. In many of them, the women have met their end through Hera's wrath. It is said that she caused Semele, mother of the God Dionysus, to be destroyed by Zeus' lightning and that she turned Gerana, Queen of the Pygmies, into a crane simply for declaring herself to be more beautiful than Hera. It would be best not to cross her."
"I wasn't planning on offending any of the Gods," Jason answered.
He looked up at the colonnade rising up in front of him and then back across the lake, eyes probing his surroundings.
"We should probably get this over and done with," he said. "The sooner we're out of here and on the road home the better."
Pythagoras frowned.
"Why?" he asked. "What is wrong?"
"Nothing," Jason answered. "At least nothing that I know of… I just have a bad feeling all of a sudden."
"It is probably all the talk of Hera's wrath," Pythagoras said earnestly.
"Maybe," Jason acknowledged. "It's just that having already offended Hekate once, I don't really want to upset any other Goddesses at the moment… you know?"
Pythagoras dropped his head and grinned to himself. Although it had been worrying at the time, at least they could all laugh about what had happened when Jason had fallen foul of Hekate and been turned into a kynikos now (even Jason tended to make light of it most of the time; albeit in a self-deprecating way).
They mounted the stylobate and entered the building. The chamber they walked into was nowhere near as vast as that of the great Temple of Poseidon in Atlantis but must once have been very similar in design. Light streamed down into a chamber that must once have been dimly lit by braziers – a dark and secretive place; the fact that the building now had no roof meaning that it would always be well lit in daylight hours now.
"Hercules said that we should look at the base of the third pillar on the left-hand side," Pythagoras reminded his friend, his voice hushed.
"Over there then," Jason replied, nodding towards the correct pillar, his tone equally quiet. Somehow it would have seemed disrespectful for either of them to raise their voice here.
They moved to the base of the pillar and looked at the ground below. The stone pavement that had once been the floor of the chamber had cracked and lifted; chunks were missing altogether, showing the hard-packed earth beneath; the effect was to leave the whole floor looking pock-marked. At the base of the pillar the paving was missing altogether, yet the ground did not look disturbed. Pythagoras knelt down and swept his hand over it.
"This is where Idas told Hercules he had buried his goods and yet I can see no evidence that he dug here," he murmured, frowning deeply. He shook himself. "I do not suppose it matters all that much," he added. "It may be that he is just very good at hiding things. Come on, let's start digging. Like you, I want to be away from this place as swiftly as possible. There is something about it that makes me uneasy."
Jason crouched down beside him and peered at the packed earth. He scraped at it experimentally with his fingers for a minute before looking up at Pythagoras.
"I don't suppose you remembered to bring a spade, did you?" he asked hopefully, realising with a sinking feeling that he had forgotten to bring anything to dig with himself.
"I had thought that the ground would be loose and not hard to shift," Pythagoras replied. "Given that the casket cannot be buried deep, I had presumed we would be able to use our hands. Perhaps there might be some sturdy sticks around that we could use," he added looking around hopefully.
"Great," Jason replied, rolling his eyes.
He grabbed the knife that was sheathed at his side and began to use the point to loosen the ground as much as he could.
"Are you going to help or are you just going to watch?" he said.
He smiled at Pythagoras to take the sting out of his words and show that he was (at least partly) joking.
"Oh," Pythagoras said. "Sorry."
He grabbed his own knife and joined his friend in loosening the ground. His knife hit something solid and he exchanged a quick glance with Jason. Working hurriedly, the two young men uncovered a small box not far below the surface of the floor. Jason lifted it out carefully and dusted the top off with one hand.
"Do you think we should open it?" he asked.
"I think it might be best to confirm that Idas' jewels are still inside," Pythagoras replied. "Although I do not believe it has been tampered with, it would do us no good to get back to Atlantis and discover the contents had been stolen. I, for one, would like to get paid for this."
Jason nodded and carefully lifted the lid. Inside, nestled on a bed of what seemed to be silk, were several glowing jewels. They were stunning.
"Defiler!"
The strident voice that rang out across the chamber made both young men jump, the lid of the box in Jason's hands falling shut with an audibly snap.
"You dare to break our most sacred laws?" the voice called out again.
Pythagoras swallowed hard and turned to face whoever it was who was there, aware that at his side Jason was doing the same.
As they turned, though, something incredible began to happen: the building began to reform itself. The broken pillars rose up again; the missing and cracked paving mended itself; the roof reappeared, plunging the chamber into darkness; and great braziers and lanterns appeared and relit themselves. At the end of the chamber, the furthest point away from the doorway (which now had a very solid looking door filling it) a great statue of a woman rose up on an enormous pedestal, providing a focal point for the room. At the foot of the pedestal, the man who had spoken was standing. He was clad in the robes of a High Priest and was flanked on either side by other priests. He was scowling and pointing at a young man in front of him, held between two guards.
Both Pythagoras and Jason stared, mouths hanging open in shock. They exchanged another look.
"What's going on?" Jason murmured.
"I do not know," Pythagoras replied, wide eyed.
"You stand accused of defiling this sacred place," the High Priest said to the young man before him.
The guards holding the young man forced him to his knees. He was barely more than a boy; thin faced and with straight mud brown hair. The green tunic he wore was torn at the neck as though it had been pulled too hard; evidence, perhaps, of a struggle.
"I am innocent," the young man protested. "I have done nothing wrong."
"That is for the Gods to judge," the priest intoned.
The young man struggled against his captors.
"Why are you doing this?" he demanded. "What have I ever done to you?"
A sword at his throat briefly silenced him
"You have attempted to take what belongs to Hera and threatened her servants in her temple," the priest sneered. "You attacked one of the priests and stole the casket from the sanctuary. You are guilty. There can be no other verdict."
"I know how it must have looked," the young man said desperately, "but I swear I did nothing wrong. You know me. I have served both Hera and the King faithfully. Why would I have done this?"
"I do not pretend to know the mind of a criminal," the priest growled. "You were found leaning over Alcaeos. There can be no doubt as to your guilt."
"I did not harm the priest. I will swear it on anything you like. I found him lying on the ground. I was trying to help him. I swear I was. You cannot think I meant him harm! Please… please. Ask him… ask him who attacked him. He will tell you it was not me!"
The boy's voice was growing evermore desperate. Beside him, Pythagoras felt Jason stirring and turned his head to see his friend carefully placing the casket he still held on the ground. The mathematician placed a restraining hand gently on the young hero's arm. Pythagoras still didn't understand what was happening and it would be better that their presence went undetected for now until things were clearer.
"Alcaeos has not awoken and it seems unlikely that he will," the High Priest hissed. "And if he does, the physician who examined him believes his wits will be permanently addled. You may as well have killed him."
"I didn't," the boy said, trying to surge forwards towards the priest.
One of the guards cuffed him hard across the face, throwing him backwards to the ground, and brought the tip of his sword up to rest in the hollow of the boy's throat; a threat against any further attempts at movement. The boy swallowed hard.
"Please," he begged. "I have done nothing wrong!"
The High Priest scoffed.
"Nothing?" he said incredulously. "You have stolen the jewels intended for Hera's crown," he gestured towards the vast statue, "and given as an offering by the King himself. Not content with such sacrilege, you have attacked and all but killed one of Hera's priests in this sacred place. Your life is forfeit. Tonight, you will be purified. Tomorrow, when the moon is at its height, you will be taken from this place and executed." He turned his head to look at one of the lower priests flanking him. "Send word to Cynus. Inform the King of what has happened here. Tell him we are attempting to find where the jewels have been hidden and ask for his help in obtaining that information." He turned back to the boy. "The King has men who are skilled in such matters," he almost purred. "You will confess everything before your purification." He looked at the priest he had been instructing before. "Tell His Majesty that the defiler will be executed tomorrow night and that we crave his presence for the execution. Now go!"
From across the room, Jason and Pythagoras saw the lesser priest bow and hurry out. The guards began to drag the struggling young man away; fighting against his captivity all the way.
"This is unfair," Jason muttered under his breath. "They have no evidence."
"His accuser is a High Priest," Pythagoras replied. "They need no further evidence than that. He speaks for the Gods. If he says the boy is guilty, then he is guilty in the eyes of both the Gods and the law."
"But what if they've got it wrong?" Jason demanded. "What if he really was just trying to help the priest who had been attacked? And I am pretty sure he doesn't have the missing jewels… because I am pretty sure that we do." He rested one hand on the casket by his knee.
"The Gods do not make mistakes," Pythagoras answered sharply.
"Leaving religion out of it for a moment, because I do not think we are going to agree on that one," Jason said. "The Gods may not make mistakes, but men do… and the High Priest is just a man when all is said and done."
"He is the mouthpiece for the Gods," Pythagoras insisted. "It is his job to interpret their will. Particularly the Goddess he is devoted to."
"But he doesn't speak directly to them, does he?" Jason argued. "He doesn't have a special way of communicating with Hera… Because in Atlantis, that's what the Oracle is for isn't it? To receive messages from the Gods. So, what if he's got it wrong? What if the boy is innocent?"
"Jason, what you are saying is heresy!" Pythagoras responded.
"No, what I am saying is right and you know it," Jason retorted. "I'm not going to let this happen."
Before Pythagoras could move, Jason had shaken off his hand and sprinted across the floor of the chamber.
"Jason!" Pythagoras called urgently after him, preparing to follow his friend. He couldn't leave Jason to race headfirst into trouble without support after all.
Jason either didn't hear or ignored him (Pythagoras was inclined to think the latter since he knew his friend's hearing was extremely sharp). He darted over to the guards holding the young man.
"Hey," he said urgently. "Leave him alone!"
Pythagoras braced himself for the inevitable explosion. The High Priest would not be likely to take Jason's interference lightly. This could easily end up with the two of them being arrested too.
It was a surprise, therefore, when no-one reacted. The guards continued to drag their prisoner slowly towards the door while the priests continued to watch them, the High Priest with his hands raised in prayer, a litany of praises for Hera spilling from his lips.
Jason shot Pythagoras a confused look.
"Stop!" he tried again.
There was still no reaction from the men he was trying to talk to.
A strange suspicion began to dawn in Pythagoras' mind. He moved over to the group of priests in front of the great statue. Standing directly in front of one of them, he waved his hand in front of the man's eyes. The priest gave no indication that he knew the young genius was there.
Pythagoras turned towards Jason.
"I do not believe they can see or hear us," he proclaimed.
"What is this place?" Jason demanded.
"I do not know," Pythagoras replied. "But I think we should leave it as quickly as we can."
"I still cannot let them do this," Jason said with determination.
He moved even closer to the guards and reached out to grab the arm of the nearest one. Before his fingers touched, however, there was a flash of light and he was thrown back across the room into a pillar, his head hitting the stone paving where he landed with a sickening crack.
The last thing he heard before blackness engulfed him, was Pythagoras desperately calling out his name.