Chapter 5

Tired, weary, sore.

That's how Lysander felt as the ragtag army of Greek villagers retreated day-after-day after suffering losses from the invading army of Persians and kingdoms from the north.

Helena and Phillip fought the idea of a mere boy joining a company from Erastus joining the fight against the invaders, but he wasn't a mere boy, and they knew that.

Everyone in the village knew of his strength and his archery skills.

"We need everyone who can fight," Captain Gyrgas told Phillip when they came to recruit Lysander. "He can make a difference against the invaders."

Phillip gave him the best horse on the farm. Helena hugged him, and did not want to let go. He said his goodbyes to Arianna and the priestesses at the temple.

Even Phoebe had kind words for him.

"We will send prayers daily for you to be protected," Phoebe said. "You have learned much in your time here. And I believe your service at the temple is not yet ended. But you must protect this village."

He hugged Samarah and Arsana, and presented an offering at the foot of the statue of Artemis.

"I wished you were here, Mother," he cried in prayer. "But you gave me your strength, and your skill with the bow. I will try to use them in a way that honors you."

Because he had not yet grown into manhood, and was not ripped with muscles, his initial presence in the army was greeted with mocking.

"Are we this desperate that we need little boys to fight by our side?" asked a warrior from Athens.

"We are desperate," Gyrgas said. "But I believe what he can do will surprise you."

The captain proved correct in the very first battle. None of the trained Greek archers could shoot as accurate as Lysander. None of them could shoot as far.

The trained archers asked to try his elaborate bow, but found they did not have the strength to pull the string, and wondered how this scrawny farm boy could. They didn't know it only worked for Artemis and her child.

And then they saw something else remarkable. They saw Lysander grab a bull by its horns, and throw it into a horde of advancing Persians.

"Surely, he must be one of the sons of Zeus!" shouted a warrior from Mycinea.

"I am the son of Phillip and Helena, farmers from the village of Erastus," Lysander told one warrior.

He did not want to boast being the son of the Goddess Artemis. He didn't want to draw attention to himself.

But he defended his mother when warriors from his own village cursed her for not providing assistance in their time of need.

Lysander also realized another truth in battle: His strength and skill with the bow were not enough to hold off an advancing army of skilled warriors.

The words Artemis told him were ringing true. And in suffering small wounds, he also knew her words about him not being immortal were also true.

"It is normal for every warrior to fear for your life," Gyrgas told him. "You are brave to a fault. And you have strengths very few possess. But you are not a god."

Lysander came to realize they were quite a few demigods and goddesses short of being able to stop the Persians.

The Greek army was on the verge of collapse as it reached Erastus.

"I am all out of strategies to defeat them," General Kronos, named for the deposed king of the gods, confided in Gyrgas.

Gyrgas admitted knowledge of the terrain didn't seem to help.

Lysander looked back to see the village. He saw a reflection of the sun come off the statue of Artemis, and came up with a plan.

"We need to retreat to the temple," Lysander told Gyrgas.

"That's suicide," Gyrgas said. "Everyone in our army knows about the curse."

"The curse only applies if men enter the temple," Lysander said. "Once our army reaches the temple, have the soldiers climb the steps and then retreat to the back side of the temple. It will give the Persians the illusion that we're going into the temple."

"You know, it might work," Kronos said.

Officers in the Greek army told their warriors to retreat to the temple when they heard the sound of Kronos' horn.

They did as they were commanded.

The priestesses watched in horror as hundreds of men ran toward and around the temple.

"What do they think they're doing?" Samarah asked one of the other priestess. "Don't they know they will die?"

But then, just as they appeared to be ready to rush into the temple, they disappeared.
'
"Where is Lysander?" Gyrgas asked one of the soldiers from the village. "Why didn't he come with us."

The young son of the goddess stopped when he reached the steps of the temple.

The Persians thought it was foolish that one remaining Greek warrior seemed to be waiting on them before they reached the temple.

"Don't they know we don't worship their gods," said the Persian commander. "It doesn't bother me to desecrate a temple of one of the Olympus gods."

A split second after he said those words came a shout from Lysander from the steps of the temple.

"If you want us, come and get us!" Lysander shouted.

Because his voice hadn't changed, and that it was at such a high pitch, the Persians laughed at his words.

"Have they sent a girl to fight against us?" the commander laughed.

They weren't laughing at what came next.

Lysander shot an arrow. It split the throat of the Persian commander.

The Persians weren't laughing after that.

"I want the head of that boy!" shouted the next highest ranking Persian officer.

As they ran toward him, Lysander calmly walked inside the temple and bowed before his mother's statue.

"Thank you Mother for the curse you have placed on this temple, and how it protects those of us inside," Lysander said as the first Persians reached the temple ... and died.

Because of their momentum, because of their limited sight, by the time Persian warriors realized their camrades were dying inside the temple, it was too late. They fell dead as soon as their steps reached the inside of the temple.

Hundreds of bodies were strewn inside the temple.

"I am so sorry," Lysander told Phoebe. "I did not know what else to do."

"You did what you had to do." the high priestess told him.

The high priestess instructed him to tell the army commanders that the priestesses would drag the bodies out onto the steps.

"Tell them their warriors can decide how to dispose of them," Phoebe said.

Lysander hugged a crying Samarah and Arsana.

"Where is Arianna?" Lysander asked.

Samarah was afraid to tell him.

Arsana gave him the news.

"She left as soon as she was told your family's farm was under attack," Arsana said.

Lysander looked out of the temple toward the direction of the farm. He saw smoke.

He asked Gyrgas if he could take leave.

"You know you can," the captain said. "Take some of our warriors with you."

A group of warriors rode with Lysander.

As they reached the farm, a small row of archers sent arrows flying.

One arrow grazed Lysander, who fell off his horse and darted into the bushes. The other warriors were killed.

Lysander reached a position on a hill where the archers were exposed. He picked them off one-by-one.

Just as he shot his last arrow, he heard screaming. He looked toward the house and spotted Arianna in a tree. Three lions were circling the tree.

He also heard screaming and fighting in the house.

He knew he had to save Arianna first. He shot an arrow, but the arrow didn't bring down the lion he hit like he had hoped.

He went running and leaped on the lion. He drew out his knife and stabbed the lion. The lion tried to bite him, so he grabbed the lion by the neck, and broke the lion's neck.

Almost has soon as he killed the first lion, a second jumped on him. Lysander flipped the lion, pulled him by his mane and slit the lion's throat.

He then jumped on the lion's back that was trying to knock over the tree. He killed the lion in much of the same manner as he did the second one.

He pulled a weeping Ariana from the tree. Just as he put her on the ground. They looked around and saw the house fully engulfed in flames.

They saw four men getting on horses and laughing.

"Hera will reward us for this, I'm sure," said the leader, whom Lysander recognized from his dreams.

It was the one who violated Artemis. The other men were with him when he did it.

*****

Lysander and Arianna locked arms as they watched their home smolder.

They found the charred remains of their parents and buried them as best they could.

"I should have taken the necklace," Lysander told Arianna. "They would still be alive if I had. I took too long fighting the lions.

"I don't know if you could have saved them," Arianna said. "You shouldn't blame yourself."

"No you shouldn't," a voice said.

Emerging in the darkness was a hooded figure.

Lysander knew who it was.

"Wished you were here, Mother," Lysander said as the goddess pulled down her hood.

"I wished I had made it sooner," Artemis said. "Ares was with the Persians who attacked the Amazons. I could not get away from him. I didn't know what was going on until it was too late."

"Where are we going to go?" Arianna said with tears in her eyes. "This was our home."

"You were going to be moving to the temple in a few months," Artemis said. "There will be room for you in the barracks with the other priestesses. Lysander, the temple is now your home, too. You'll stay in my private chamber. It's not been used as much as I'm sure my priestesses would have liked."

Arianna still broke down in tears.

"They're gone," Arianna said. "I have no one left except Lysander."

"Your parents raised my child, so now it's time for me to return the favor," Artemis said. "From this day forward, you will be known as my honored daughter. And Lysander, with them gone, I will take a more active role in your parenting and training."

The goddess told them to gather what belongings they had before they headed to the temple.

"I want the necklace," Lysander whispered to to Arianna.

"It's yours, anway," Arianna said, removing a pouch from the bag that contained the necklace.

Lysander removed the necklace from the pouch, and decided to put it on.

He blacked out.

*****

"Hey wait, what happened?" Lysander said groggily, only the voice coming from his mouth sounded a little more like Arianna's.

"You passed out for a minute," Artemis said. "Your body was just getting used to the changes, Lydia."

"Lydia?" the once boy asked.

"Well, she can't really call you Lysander looking like that," Arianna laughed.

Lysander, now Lydia, didn't feel too different, other than the weird sounding voice.

Her clothes felt a little tighter in some places. Her chest felt a little more weighty.

"Oh my!" she said when she noticed one of her breasts hanging out. Her breasts, a weired thought.

She adjusted the tunic.

Both Artemis and Arianna laughed.

"We'll have to get you some clothes for when you're Lydia," Arianna said. "Don't know if your 'Lysander' clothes will do."

"What 'Lysander' clothes," Lydia replied. "All I have is what's in my bag that I took to wore. Everything else was lost in the fire."

"So were mine," Arianna.

"I'll get Arsana to buy clothes for you, both," Artemis said.

Arianna showed Lydia what she looked like in a mirror.

She didn't see a well-chisled demi-goddess. Just a young girl who looked a lot like Lysander ... and even more like a goddess that was her mother. The girl in the mirror was also extremely beautiful.

"What's wrong?" Artemis said.

"Other than looking like a girl, I don't look too different .... I mean," Lydia said.

"Increased powers doesn't mean you look like a muscle-bound Amazon," Artemis said. "See that oak tree over there?, go knock it down. But don't pull it up by its roots as you would have done as Lysander."

Lydia walked over, rolling her eyes. She hit the tree. It fell over ... like it was made of straw.

"With added power comes more responsibility," Artemis said. "Do not be reckless. Do not let your anger get the best of you. You are still mortal. You can still get hurt. You can die. And you will still be facing challenges that are challenges even for your strength, especially now that ...."

"Now what?" Lydia asked.

"That Hera appears to have taken more than a passing interest in you," Artemis said. "You must be careful."

As they were walking, Lydia noticed something else. She stopped and looked inside her tunic, and had a shocked look.

She no longer felt a bulge between her legs.

"It's gone, it's been replaced ..." Lydia said.

"When you're Lydia, you have a vagina," Artemis said. "It's just as much 'your part' as your penis was. And don't worry, When you're Lysander, the penis will be back."

"Just wait until you have to pee," Arianna laughed. "Welcome to my world."