Romanowski and Rosemary

13. Medisa and Althea

My heart was going to explode.

"Please save, M- Medisa..."

"Althea!" I cried out, "Who- Who did this to you? Al... Althea..."

I was imprisoned in my own body, not able to do anything as I watched the two women I cared so much for, suffering.

"Mila, look at me. Althea!" Her head dropped in unconsciousness, her movements seized. "Althea! Where are you?! Tell me something, Althea! Why do you talk about saving Medisa, who's already dead?!" But she didn't wake up. Sobs racked my body at the thought of who did that to her. Made her bleed and lose consciousness.

Weakly, she raised her head, and again, I was met by Medisa's dimmed green eyes.

"Save... Althea..." she heaved, dark blood trickling down the corner of her lips. "D- Didn't you... see h- her?" she murmured.

"Medisa..." I struggled to breathe. Nothing made sense. "What are you doing... Medisa..."

But the next moment, her tormented cry echoed around the prison walls, thrusting me nearer to insanity.

When she silenced, barely breathing anymore, I found Althea staring back at me.

"Save, Medisa..." she whispered in the last bit of her breath.

I wanted to tear my hair apart as the two women began transitioning into each other at a faster rate. Each whispering the other's name, a gruelling cry for help.

"Save, Althea..."

"Save, Medisa..."

And with every transit, their condition began to become worse.

"S- Save, Althea..."

"Save, M- Medisa..."

"Save, Al-Althea."

"Please, Julian, please..."

"Althea!" I cried out, waking up in a jolt on my bed.

Breathing heavily, I gasped for air. Sweat covered me from head to toe; my heart beating out of my chest. Shuddering, I glanced around, finding early morning sunlight immersing my room, the weather warm with birds twittering about.

I buried my face in my hands, thinking about what I saw. Tortured cries echoed in my head, provoking me to hit my head somewhere to get rid of it.

But when I retracted my hands, I found them wet. Was I really... weeping? I glanced back at my pillow, tracing my fingers over to find it wet.

Then it struck me.

Althea. I'd just taken Althea's name.

Since the day she gave me that fruit in the forest, when I couldn't even see her face, I had chosen, very painfully, to forget about her. Because dreaming about a woman, when she was a priestess- a holy entity serving God, was a sin. More so, she wasn't Althea anymore, but... Chryseis. The wife of a priest. And it was morally wrong to think about someone else's wife. Especially a priest's wife.

My head hurt every time I tried rejecting her thoughts. Of those memories of being so close to her, seeing her so relaxed in my arms. Her sweet little giggles and precious attempts at kissing me, because she presumed she didn't know how to do that.

I heaved out. Here I was again, thinking the unholy. I had read every damned scripture on human sins. Particularly, the part that detailed the punishment meted out to a man who fantasies about a priest's wife. I read it repeatedly, just to induce that fear in myself. And it had started to work too.

Until I saw this dream, and I was back to where I started.

I had completely stopped worrying about Althea, even wiped out her very name from my mind because I knew she was safe, married and serving the Goddess. She'd become a priestess. Someone who was off limits to a man like me. The day I'd seen her by the Nile's bank, washing the temple utensils... It brought tears to my heart.

She deserved paper and ink, not some utensils to wash off.

Knowing I won't be able to fall back asleep, I got out of the bed, washing my face repeatedly with cold water. Heaving, I held the marble top, staring at my reflection in the water.

Althea... At a time when I'd made peace with myself that I had no hope with her, I had to see this dream.

The more shocking part being... Medisa herself asking me to save her.

I splashed more water over my face. Was Althea really in a situation as shown in my dream? A tremor ran up my body. No. It can't be. A priestess can't be in that position. She was well respected and everyone bowed before her for her blessings.

Unless... someone kidnapped her...

I'd never heard of priestess kidnappings because the temple authorities protected them. More so, Althea was in Alexandria. Most well-known kingdom of Egypt, and I had nothing to worry about. I only heard about priestess kidnapping in Greek tales where enemy warriors abducted them and then had to face the wrath of the Gods the priestess served. There had been no attacks over Alexandria too, so that's out of the picture as well...

My heart started beating obnoxiously fast. As if something wanted to tell me I was thinking in the wrong path. I gulped, weaving a hand through my hair. This... this feeling in my heart... it wasn't helping me.