"He is a demon in disguise." "That's why you want his head on a spike, not because you believe he'll destroy our world, but because you're afraid he'll destroy yours." "You are ready." "The gods can't trust you anymore." "You've turned love into scorn." "Ready for what?" "Who are you?" "Your first mother." "Gaia." "You have made your third and last sacrifice to the gods." "Imagine that a second to us is like a day to them." "We would appear like helpless statues to them." "Now they will accept you." "Who will lead us over the bridge?" "Someone who sees clearly without her eyes." "What have I sacrificed?" "Your soul." "Son of Aegeus, there must be another way." "Quiet!" "I will have my satisfaction, or this quest ends here." "Please, I can't focus." "I'm too scared." "You disgust me." "She saw exactly what she needs to see." "She didn't give up her gift after all." "It appears not." "...Five, six, seven, eight, nine 10, 11, 12, 13." "Circe, demon goddess of the five corners of the mortal soul, listen to my prayer as I turn the backs of my hands to the earth." "You know me." "You know my heart, you know my legacy." "You know I have never once called to you or uttered your name." "But I call to you now, fearful of your power, and alive to your burden." "Ashes, black rod, crow, and wax." "Turn the dagger west." "Scatter the rose seed." "Listen to the sound of the scythe." "Listen." "I, Medea of Colchis, bring the solemn oath of your deliverance." "The solemn oath of my deliverance?" "My body, my life, my soul." "And what do you ask in return?" "Lead me to the door of Olympus." "You will give up your life for this?" "I will." "Why?" "So that others may live." "The dead are in the arms of Hades." "I have no influence over the god of the underworld." "Lead me there and I will do the rest." "There is no turning back, Medea." "You will be giving your life, your soul, to me." "So be it." "Medea?" "I'm all right." "What happened?" "Circe is inside me." "She will help us, but we must hurry." "She grows stronger by the hour." "Eventually, there will be nothing left of me." "Where are you taking us?" "To where we need to go." "And where is that?" "I don't know, and if you don't keep quiet and let me concentrate," "I will not be able to follow Circe's lead." "If you would let me find the door to Olympus using scientific methods, you wouldn't have had to sacrifice so much." "The last time I trusted your scientific methods," "Daedalus, you led us to the doors of hell." "How long do you have before Circe takes over your body?" "The same impatient viper which coils around your heart, son of Aegeus, coils around mine." "Circe will lead you to the sacred doors, but Circe cannot open them." "No one can." "And then will you restore Queen Medea?" "Circe gives your queen one day." "Then what?" "Her body is mine." "After waiting patiently for so long," "Circe will feel again." "Will we reach the door to Olympus in one day?" "It matters little." "What?" "Why?" "You will not open the door." "You will not know how." "Your oracle will not lead you blind over the bridge." "Her soul is too fragile." "You will not reach The m-mighty Zeus because Hades will pull you into the fire of Tartarus..." "Stop!" "Don't talk to her!" "She gets stronger with every word!" "Give me a moment..." "The world is spinning." "We must all help Medea as much as we can." "Should we carry her?" "No, I must lead you on foot." "Oracle... we cannot force you to guide us over the bridge, but if you do," "I know you, too, will find peace." "You are not the man I knew." "I carry a great burden." "Greed and ambition." "No, I am the first to face my demon." "What is your name?" "Hmm?" "Your name is cursed." "Now I know why." "Holy mother, whose weary eyes tolerate the mysteries of our mortal destiny, look deep into this man's soul and cast his real name on the wind so that I may know him properly." "You are unmasked." "Speak it, and you will turn to stone." "How would you know?" "Have you ever seen it happen?" "Hmm?" "Your name is..." "Don't Demon." "Your name is Devil." "Your name is..." "No, Daedalus, let me go!" "He must die, Daedalus!" "Stop it, Oracle." "We haven't come all this way to watch you destroy everything we've worked for!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "Have you lost your mind?" "Don't you know me by now?" "Whatever mistakes I have made," "I'm still your friend, your ally!" "Oh..." "Oh, I loved you." "Then help me." "You betrayed me." "You betrayed your kin." "Now you will betray the gods who made you." "I follow my destiny." "All your destiny is insanity and chaos." "It is the gift of the gods." "You're a fool, a sad, desperate, deluded fool." "Can't you see the Lexicon is not a gift." "It's a devil's curse." "Then help me destroy it before it destroys us all." "Your death will destroy it." "Are you sure?" "Yes!" "How many have gone before me?" "A thousand?" "10,000?" "And not one has died before he's passed it on?" "That is its legacy." "Or its lie." "Why would the gods grant a gift or a curse that offers mortal man the promise of immortality?" "Zeus is a benevolent father who shares his paradise, but you will use his generosity to destroy him." "Why would he create a demon, if that's what I am, so that I can kill him?" "It is not for us to judge the will of a god." "He needs me." "What?" "It's the only credible explanation." "Zeus needs me." "He needs me to solve the Lexicon." "It is for his benefit, not ours." "The question is, why would the gods rely on man to solve their test?" "Where is Medea?" "I think she went that way." "Can you walk?" "Do I have a choice?" "Hurry then." "Will you join us on our quest to help the gods, or must I drag you by the end of my rope?" "What was that?" "It's unlike any animal I've ever heard." "We'd better pick up the pace." "Look." "Hurry and shut the door!" "Shut the door and brace it!" "Why?" "What is that sound?" "The Fates are gathering." "They smell our blood and prepare to sit in judgment." "We should run." "We cannot run." "We can only hope they do not breach my defenses." "What did you do?" "Brace the door." "Secure the shutters." "I have spun the secret scent of the sphinx around these walls." "Will that work?" "We shall see." "What is that terrible noise?" "The Spinner, spinning the thread of life onto her spinning wheel, while her sister measures a length of thread for each of us." "And then?" "The third sister cuts the thread." "So, what should we do?" "Pray that the noise never stops." "Why?" "If the gods have chosen this moment, we must accept it." "No, no, no!" "Let me go!" "No, don't!" "No!" "No, let me go!" "Accept your fate!" "It's a trick, Oracle!" "The siren's call!" "Don't be fooled!" "Son of Aegeus, help me!" "It's beautiful." "The Fates are circling!" "A raven curl." "A lock of Ariadne's hair." "It's beautiful." "Ariadne?" "Wake up!" "Look at me." "Clear your mind." "Close your eyes and think only of the images I describe." "I can't breathe!" "Listen to me." "Chronos, god of time, approaches, swinging his mighty scythe." "Picture him in your mind." "Listen to the sound of his blade through the air ready to cut the life from your body." "Close your eyes!" "If you see the light on the razor's edge..." "It moves fast, so be ready." "His next blow will kill you." "I swear, Oracle," "I will cut your thread myself!" "I'm not afraid to die." "Mother's face, lion's claw, beat your fierce wings in the deep chasms of Nistnesus, spread your scent, burn its power west." "Demon breath..." "Kindle..." "Show your evil light." "Tread wisely, or the corners of your soul will take you down." "Where are we?" "Is this magic or illusion?" "You dare cross my ray?" "Refuge, Lord, from an unjust spinner." "Hermes, messenger god, sentinel between our worlds, forgive my desperate cry." "How did you evoke the flame?" "Circe guides us." "Circe is a witch." "We escort he who carries the Lexicon." "You are cursed, Son of Aegeus." "Your quest is done." "The Lexicon is his curse, Holy Father." "Oracle of Gaia, you understand nothing." "Your sacrifice has been in vain." "I-I am your servant." "You would do better to know your kind." "I have given my heart to Gaia." "Gaia will punish you for your sacrifice and let you burn eternal in the inferno of Tartarus." "But why, Lord?" "We are not of this world." "Those who cross our threshold will not be rewarded." "Before your thread is severed," "I must take the Lexicon from your heart to pass to another." "Touch him, and he will destroy you." "Show him what you wear on your finger." "You didn't notice it, did you," "God Hermes?" "I wonder why." "You're not made of magic, are you?" "You're made of nature... just like us." "Mortals do not know how to use the Tone." "Shall we test that theory?" "I know how." "So does he." "What do you know?" "They're afraid of the ring, that much is clear." "Quiet, they'll hear you." "They cannot hear us, only see us." "Except for them, now we are frozen in a different speed of time, like statues." "They've gone." "Don't let the silence fool you." "We should wait for sunrise." "Hermes is not a powerful god." "No, he's not a loving god." "Don't be fooled." "He's a... he's a trickster, twisting the truth until it suits his own perverse taste." "He'll have you believing black is white and day is night." "Quiet, Oracle, let us think." "No, my holy mother, Gaia, loves me." "She protects her flock and guides those who follow her light..." "Stop!" "No, I will not play any part in this." "What will you do then?" "Protect my gods against doubters, witches and marked men." "You would trust them over your own kind?" "Always." "Even those you love?" "Who love you." "You don't love me." "I could love you, Oracle, if you'd let me." "Why?" "I loved you once." "Don't you dare try to woo me." "You love another." "And who do you love?" "Why do you twist me?" "Hmm?" "I care for you." "I know you have feelings for me, too." "My feelings torture me." "The torture would stop if you trusted them." "Put your faith in me." "I need you, Oracle of Gaia, more than ever before." "We are kindred spirits, you and I." "We have walked the same road, fought the same battles." "Our destinies are entwined." "What are you?" "Just a puppet for that witch?" "A soulless, vain, corrupt cheat, who thinks I'll give up my faith for a kiss?" "Why would I ever fall for your vacuous charms?" "No, no, you're nothing to me." "You are dead." "And you are a fool to trust in the gods." "They protect me as they protect you." "Otherwise they'd have killed you a long time ago." "You've lost your mind." "No, she's absolutely right." "If Hermes truly believed you to be a threat, he'd have killed you." "He's afraid of the ring." "You said so yourself." "He'd have found a way to take it from you nevertheless." "They're keeping you alive, all of us alive, for a reason." "The gods don't work with one mind." "They battle each other just as much as mortals do." "You think Hermes was afraid of a more powerful god?" "His master, Zeus." "In that case, the question is, why has Zeus planted the Lexicon in Man?" "What motive does he have to turn mortals into immortal gods?" "It is a devil's curse." "But which devil?" "I don't know." "And why hasn't Zeus stopped this devil?" "It's not for us to judge the will of a god." "And if you're wrong?" "What will your God make of you then?" "Standing between him and his design?" "My vision was very clear." "Visions are never clear." "I will not listen to a witch." "Somehow, we have found each other, perhaps the only people alive who can solve this impossible riddle." "Is that a coincidence or the work of the gods?" "Zeus planted the Lexicon to test Man." "Before he shares his gift, Man must prove himself worthy." "This man is not worthy." "And yet it was he who Zeus chose, perhaps because he has the most to prove." "But we have all suffered, made terrible mistakes because, like Hero, our souls are imperfect." "This is our chance to make amends." "If we embrace Zeus, accept his blessings, then mankind will be forever transformed." "We are so close to him now." "I can feel him reaching out to us." "Join us, Oracle of Gaia, take his hand, and help light the soul of Man." "Don't worry, they've gone." "You can tell?" "I'm sorry, Oracle." "I shouldn't have done what I did to you back there." "How could you think" "I still have feelings for you, after everything you've done, the monster you've become?" "I have steered your course, Oracle." "My course?" "It was you who told me who my father was, remember?" "And of my destiny, the riddle of the Lexicon." "It was you who worked hard to persuade me to steal into Athens." "And whenever my resolve wavered, it was you who urged me to stay the course." "Well, I was mistaken." "So now you absolve yourself of all responsibility?" "You have sacrificed too much." "I have done what you wanted me to do." "No, you have fallen under that witch's spell." "I would never guide you as she has." "Then guide me now." "I will play my part, but not for Zeus, nor you, nor your demon witch, but because I have nothing left in this world but the hope of my mother Gaia's sweet embrace." "The ring." "What have you not told us, Daedalus?" "Excuse me?" "You know more than you're letting on." "My theories are merely that... theory." "You threatened Hermes, said you knew how to use the ring." "I was thinking on my feet." "What do you know?" "I know that these giant edifices aren't temples, as we once thought, but the gods themselves, or their enemies, defeated in battle and left to petrify." "A war between the gods?" "Thousands of years ago, judging from their remains." "I also know that those who survived live in a different speed of time, moving so fast, that a second to us is like a day to them, or even a week." "That's why they're invisible." "They're hiding." "From who?" "Not from us, naturally." "Perhaps from their enemies, creatures we can only imagine, from other worlds." "Did our Gods come from other worlds, too?" "Very likely." "So, what are we to them?" "I wouldn't be surprised if we were nothing more than a smokescreen to throw their enemies off their scent." "You all right?" "Medea?" "Root of the cypress sapling, olive and peppercorn, dried figs..." "Medea!" "She needs water." "There's no water for miles." "An underground spring, perhaps, or a desert cactus." "She's fading." "Any other ideas?" "If we dig a hole, say 10 dorons deep by 20 wide, then cover it with a large bronze plate, funnelled to a hole at its centre, then the dew that collects on it overnight would probably fill half a cup." "Any other ideas?" "That we can actually try?" "Hermes, messenger god, guardian of mortal men, although you cannot hear my prayers," "I know that you can see me here." "You helped us once." "I beg you help us again." "Show me where I can..." "I've found water!" "Here?" "Why?" "Our guardian, Hermes, showed me." "How?" "You won't have to dig far." "Why would Hermes help us?" "He was going to kill us and take the Lexicon." "That's just what he wants you to think, or rather what he wants the other gods to think." "Oracle, if I hadn't threatened Hermes with the ring, he would have left us to the Fates." "No, Hermes is a trickster, a master of illusion, his lies impenetrable to all, but me, of course, I can always see through a lie." "That's why he attacked me." "He realized I was the only one who could see the truth." "Why would he want us, or other gods, to think he was hurting us when, in fact, he was helping us?" "Because he has to keep everyone happy." "What?" "What?" "He has to help his friends, but make his enemies think he's actually helping them." "Believe me, I know what that's like." "Look, if I'm wrong, there won't be any water." "Hermes didn't call it the ring of the Magi, did he?" "He used his own name, no doubt its real name." "The Tone." "Yes, the Tone." "If he was helping us without making it look as though he was, that in itself is a clue." "How?" "I don't know, but his pantomime confirms that the ring is dangerous to the gods, perhaps even capable of killing a god, as the Magi believe." "He also said that they're not of this world, that those who cross their threshold will not be rewarded." "That could mean a number of different things." "That they're originally from another world, as you said?" "Or that we cannot enter their speed of time and hope to live." "Or that we should live as we do and be content with who we are." "Children of Zeus, your father awaits." "Medea, are you all right?" "Medea?" "The ring." "Here?" "You know this place?" "The Temple of Gaia." "Now that Circe has brought you to the doors of Olympus," "Circe will leave with her prize." "You haven't shown us where it is." "This is the door." "How does it work?" "Circe cannot open the door." "I can't let you leave." "Not yet." "How will you stop Circe?" "If you want Medea alive, you must help us open the door." "Circe cannot open the door." "Then Medea dies here." "You are weak, son of Aegeus, driven by mortal longing." "Step aside." "You're claiming your prize too soon, Circe." "You promised Medea a day." "The day is almost over." "Your almighty peers sit in judgment." "Circe's conscience lights a white flame." "I see it fade." "Who will stop Circe?" "You, Oracle of Gaia?" "You only have the power to look beyond the veil, nothing more." "And with that power" "I can see the one who will destroy you." "Who?" "Medea." "There is nothing left of Medea's soul." "That's what she'll have you believe while she gathers her strength." "Medea is no match for Circe." "13 steps and 13 floors, each taller than the next." "Quiet, witch!" "Spin flax into a hangman's noose to carry the wind's sacred psalm..." "I see Medea growing in strength." "Her frozen heart cools Circe's flames." "Circe burns the mortal witch..." "As the ice turns into water..." "Circe boils the water..." "Not before the water quells the fire..." "No, no, no, no, no, don't touch her." "You'll break the spell." "Cool spring water drenches Circe's flames and turns it into steam..." "Circe must drink." "The Oracle of Gaia holds a cup of cool spring water." "Give Circe the cup." "Oracle will only give the cup to Medea." "Medea?" "Thank you, Oracle of Gaia." "Has she gone?" "No." "She waits until the day is done." "But for now, I am returned." "This whole edifice houses a giant machine." "You'll fall if you're not careful." "Four... 17... and eight." "That makes 105 and a half with that spoke." "Yup, no doubt about it." "No doubt about what?" "I haven't the slightest idea what this thing does, or, indeed, how it does it." "Pull me up!" "How much time do you have?" "When the sky turns day into night," "I will be hers." "We have to hurry." "Really?" "I thought we could take our time." "I have an idea." "What?" "We should consult the Oracle." "I have brought the sacred Lexicon here to the door of Olympus." "I have solved its riddles and fulfilled its quests." "Now, great Oracle of Gaia, tell me how to open the door." "If what you say is true, that you have sacrificed your love... heritage... and soul... to the gods... you must kiss the living mouth of Gaia." "Then the door to Olympus will open for you." "How can I kiss the mouth of Gaia?" "Just lean down and kiss it." "Hmm." "That's not the living mouth of Gaia." "That is." "No." "No, I am merely her Oracle." "She speaks through you." "That makes you her living mouth." "Yes, but..." "Oracle... can I kiss you?" "No." "No?" "If the kiss doesn't mean what it should, then it won't work." "Why?" "What should it mean?" "More than you could ever know, Mercenary." "I have given up too much to be denied now." "You haven't done nearly enough." "I know how I feel." "Let me prove myself." "If I've come this far to fail at the last," "I will walk away and leave you forever in peace." "You are cursed, indeed." "But if it means" "I will finally be rid of you, then so be it." "Goodbye, Mercenary." "Time has stopped still." "The door to Olympus is not a door as we know it, it is a door in the speed of time." "We have entered the realm of Olympus, home of the gods... a place invisible to mortal man, a place hidden in time."