The blond guy also got his three-letter name.
"The last person?" SET called out and Athena walked forward knowing she was the last person.
She walked forward and stopped once she was instructed to do so then she clicked on a letter on her left then decided to click one at the bottom of the keyboard. It made a beep with each contact.
She hesitates her next direction of finger, but then shrugs it off. Her name was Athena, and she knew nothing would change that. Why not play along? So what if she ends up choosing "Eat" as her three-letter name, none of this would matter when she escapes this place.
With that comforting thought, she let her left finger trail and click on whatever it falls on.
She opened her blindfold to see the name she had made. Although it didn't matter, she was still hoping it wasn't another bad name like a lot of them there'd had.
Unwrapping the blindfold, she blinks her eyes to clear her vision. Peering into the screen, she holds her breath as she sees her new name written before her in bold letters.
EVE
"Oh wow, how lucky you are. It's an actual name, you know?" said a woman from the crowd of people.
Athena was thankful it wasn't a bad name and nobody would refer to her as "Eat" or some other gross name, but she still tells herself that nine of this matters.
"So what?" She rolled her eyes. "The name doesn't matter cause that's not who I am. It's just so these Eradicators could properly address me until I get myself out of here," Athena sassily remarked.
"She's right. Once you get out of here, those names will be null until we meet again," SET agreed aloud.
"So we'll actually be getting out of here? You weirdos will let us go?" the blond guy asked.
"Yes," SET simply answered.
Athena stares at SET thoughtfully.
"What do you mean by '...until we meet again'? If we leave here, we'll never meet again. Actually the best thing, 'cause I will get you arrested if we ever cross paths."
"If you're still that angry, then be assured you won't be leaving here at all."
A voice echoed across the room that causes their heads to whip around, just in time to notice a man walking in through the only door in the room.
He was dressed in the same uniforms as the rest of the men with the jackets that had a woman with snakes for hair.
He had rolled his sleeves rolled up to reveal some tattoos on his arms.
"So these are the trainees?" The man chuckles, asking no one in particular as his eyes sweep through the crowd.
"Who are you?" the black girl asked, scrutinising him with unhindered anger.
The man chuckled again.
"Dispositions! I love that about us humans, but those would be put in check here," he said in reply, walking towards SET.
"Now you can all reveal your name tags," said the man, offhandedly.
Set nodded stiffly then walked up to Athena, tapping slightly above her chest before she can interject. A tag with her name hovers above her. The rest of them, stunned, quickly helped themselves in repeating SET's gesture and, as expected, the same hover name tags appear above each of them.
"Back to your question," the man taps his chest while pointedly looking at the dark-skinned girl. A name tag equally appears with an unbelievable name. The man grins as he gestures to the name tag now hovering above him like the rest of them.
DAD
Some of the new trainees roars in laughter.
"Yeah, yeah, I just clicked whatever my fingers touched and became a father." DAD laughed with them.
"Dad, can I go home now, please?" The black girl joked and some continues laughing.
"What are you laughing at? We have been kidnapped remember?" Athena reminds them, annoyance quickly seeping into her heart.
"Wait up, everyone." A dark-skinned guy suddenly shouted, gaining everyone's attention.
"Why does everyone keep shouting like they've got something to say?" someone whispered.
"They're enjoying the attention even in this situation?" another butted in.
But the guy ignored whatever they said and walked forward to the Gordon Eradicators, standing directly before the one called DAD.
"Does this mean you all were also brought here like the rest of us?" he asked, looking very disturbed.
"That is correct," DAD answered him in a breath.
The guy's eyes went wide. He kept looking from one to the other as if trying to read a sliver of lie in those words. Everyone else remained silent too.
Athena was also in the same dilemma. She was getting scared again, for no absolute reason.
Does this not mean that they would never be free from this people? Athena wonders. She observes the uniformed men and wonders what this talk of "trainees" actually mean.
"Now, will everyone settle down for the big reveal?" SET stepped forward, breaking the silence permitting the crowd.
Everyone looks from one to the other in unsurety, before sitting on the ground.
"First of all, we ask this question to all of you here: Why is murder bad?" says SET. "And I require your answers too."
"No, we've been doing exactly what you weirdos have been asking from us, even risking our lives. Now, you answer us!" the black man, finally getting his voice again, demands with his arms crossed, trying to seem intimidating which really isn't working.
"It's because it's wrong by law," Athena answers, ignoring the guy who cries 'Hey!' in protest.
"Because we're humans, we cannot kill one another as savagely as humans," the blond guy added.
"Look who's talking!" the short-haired lady with parted bangs shouted at him.
The guy simply looked at her with a bored look.
"It's because we aren't animals," the dark guy finally lets in, answering with his eyes glued on DAD's.
DAD chuckled, but he did not seem moved or intimidated by him.
"We've given our answers now, what do you guys think?" the brown-skinned guy of before asked.
"We think it's nothing in order to survive. Once a human threatens the lives of others, then it must be killed," SET said, blankly.
The crowd roars with "What?" and murmurs ensued.
"Okay... what do you mean by that?" asked the blond guy.
Athena was also wondering the same thing. She realised there was more than met the ears in those words Set had muttered.
"What? Why are you all so judgemental? Wasn't this woman fighting with him because he could have caused her death? Aren't murderers supposed to be ruled out?" SET says.
"Okay, but what does that have to do with us?" the dark guy asked?
The screen in front of them suddenly blanked to reveal an image.
As Athena stared on, she feels goosebumps spread across her skin. The picture was very hideous. It revealed the same woman with snakes for hair, on their uniforms, only this time way more intimidating. The thick snakes reminded her, in the depth of her amnesia, of heavy braids. Only thing was, these braids were mobile. They looked as slimy as the grossest-looking reptiles, killing out whatever beauty was left of the woman.
"Want to know who this is?" says SET, enjoying their astonishment. "This is Medusa, a Gordon. Gordons are humanoid creatures that have snakes for hair."
Everyone listened in seized breaths.
"The first record of Gordons is in the ancient Greek mythology, but they're no myths, I tell you. Do you know why it was ever considered as one? Well, it's because we made that happen." Set's face beams with pride.
DAD rolled his eyes. "Okay, Set, let me handle it from here now," he said dismissively and then walked over to the screen.
"If we allow you to tell the story then they'll never hear it." DAD mumbled. SET didn't seem to be embarrassed or she kept it really hidden.
"Okay folks, up here," DAD said, stealing the attention of everyone.
He swiped the picture to the side and another picture appeared, this one was that of an extremely beautiful woman.
"This is Medusa before she became a freak. She was the only mortal Gordon left so she lived as a human. She liked this goddess Athena so much, so she decided to serve the goddess all her life. When she came of age she joined the temple of the goddess to be her priestess and she did wonderfully. Actually, too wonderfully. Her beauty caught the eyes of so many men, and she soon had frequent visitors at the temple. Some even said she was prettier than Athena and loved the way her hair moved as she worked," DAD narrated.
"To cut it short," he continued, "the goddess was jealous. To worsen the case, even Poseidon the water god desired Medusa, but she refused him 'cause she had to remain chaste as a priestess. But the dude just couldn't take no for an answer. Medusa ran away and went to the temple thinking she might get help from the goddess, but the green-eyed jealous goddess did nothing and watched the water dude have his way with her.
"After that, the goddess came down and accused Medusa of bringing shame to her temple and cursed her to become a real Gordon this time. She had snakes for hair but the curse was more severe than that."
DAD looked around before continuing, he had gained everyone's interest in the story and everyone waited for him to speak and continue his story.
"Whoever looks into her eyes turns into stone." He revealed.
"Is this some kind of a fairytale or what? None of this could have happened, right?" A lady laughed and some nodded in agreement but everyone was still waiting to hear more from DAD.
"It's far from fairytale. She existed," DAD emphasised .
"You said existed, so why's she such a big deal now?" The blond guy asked.
"She's a big deal because she gave birth to creatures like herself. No one knew what they were until it was too late for many, as they turned a lot of people into stone statues." DAD answered. "According to the mythology record, Medusa was slayed by a demigod named Persus using a shield and a sword, some time after she had given birth to her offsprings. However, that was not completely true; Persus did not finish the job."
"That's why you formed an association to kill her offsprings?" Athena guessed aloud.
"Not exactly. We were chosen for this," DAD replied firmly.
"What do you mean chosen?"
"We didn't just pick up some random people for this job." DAD swiped the picture to the side ones again. "Persus, the guy that slayed Medusa, also had children of his own." The picture of a guy in his ancient Greek clothing was on display. He was holding a shiny, bronze sword and a shield.
"Those weapons on him are not regular weapons. Fortunately, we do have all the materials for battling Medusa's offsprings."
"So you're saying we were brought here to kill some monster?" A woman asked sounding really irritated.
Everyone shared her sentiment.
"We never asked for any of this," someone else shouted.
"Let us leave!" Someone shouted and everyone joined in a begged.
Everyone except the blond guy, the dark-skinned guy and girl, and Athena.
"No, I want to stay and kill those things. I like the idea." The black girl stepped out to say.
"Hey kid shut up, you have no idea what you're saying. This is serious business and these people are nuts. What Medusa? There's no such thing. They are all nuts and we have to get out of here." The woman that hit the black girl on her head before went out to scold her.
DAD sighed then he snapped his finger.
Suddenly guns were pointed at everyone in the room except for the Eradicators, of course.
"No one is leaving until it's time. I don't want to hear anyone making such a request ever again!" DAD shouted. His demeanor had changed and he looked really angry and could kill.
"There shall be no more questions!"
"Wait one last one," the black girl raised up her hand ignoring the fact that a gun is pointed at her, "Why is a gun pointed at me as well? I said it looked fun and I'm willing to join." She asked.
DAD ignored her and looked at the rest. "I hope I have made that clear?"
"But we don't want to kill any body, that should be done by the government or secret agent or something." A man spoke up whilst shaking. He was terrified and the same goes for everyone. Everyone immediately became cautious.
"Hey stop asking questions on everyone's behalf. You're on your own if you get shot." A woman standing next to him said.
"Hey, I'm fighting for us here regardless of my situation you ungrateful hag." The man curse at her.
"Ok listen, maybe we haven't introduced ourselves well enough, we are the secret agent who's been assigned to eliminate those creatures, we are government approved world wide because they know it's to keep humans safe." DAD clarified once more sounding much calmer now but he wasn't sounding patient at all.
"So everyone calm down and don't get ahead of yourselves. We all here are the chosen ones."
"You know what, everyone follow me." DAD ordered and began walking away.
But SET stopped him. "Where will you be going?" She asked him.
"You know where, now get out of my way." He ordered her.
"But you know it's not time they enter that room yet." She continues her objection.
"Move." He said we finality and this time she stopped blocking his path and allowed him to proceed.
Before he did, he snapped his finger and all the guns disappeared from sight.
Everyone was relieved.
"Well follow me." DAD ordered and everyone followed behind him like he was their leader.
At this point Athena had lost most of her confidence and was shaking.
The Medusa creature could not possibly be real right? She thought to herself.
Everything wasn't looking good for her. Her stomach formed nuts and she felt like puking inside her mouth. As everyone followed, she stopped to look at the screen on the thin air.
She swiped it back until the picture of the woman with snakes for hair appeared.
She looked terrible and greenish like a green snake.
She kept looking at it and the more she stared, the more she felt dizzy. She kept looking at the creatures eyes.
They were green and looked so inhuman.
"Hey! Why are you always behind?" The blond boy called out to her and she snapped out of it and followed everyone.
A door had opened up for DAD and everyone passed through it following him.
Passing through the door, it shut immediately behind her. She also saw that they were in a hallway.
A long hallway with one path, no other rooms or path visible only straight ahead which DAD went.
If anyone thought of escaping there was nothing to do now.
Everyone followed him silently until a they reached the end of it.
But it wasn't the end and a door opened once he was five feet away from the wall.
He stepped in and those behind him went in as well but as soon as they entered, screams were heard.