Synopsis
Athena, Part 1 Athena is overseeing the Archaean soldiers’ siege of the city of Troy. Already long and bloody, the war has no end in sight and Athena despairs over the devastation and death caused in the name of honor. She imagines how the tale of the war will be recorded as the feats of kings and warriors, her part in the story obscured. Recognizing that the struggle and success of women is often drowned out by the clamorous battles of men, Athena decides that it is time for the whole truth to be told. Meanwhile, supporting the Trojan defense, Artemis also perceives the situation’s senselessness and calls on her sister deities for assistance, reciting an incantation of their names. Athena, with her gift of prophesy, can foretell that out of this turmoil, opportunity arises: women, through their honesty, courage, and power, will emerge from this imposed silence.
Mountain On Mount Olympus, the immortals are watching events unfold below. They see that Athena and Artemis will soon be tested, and when immortals are tested, consequences play out on the human stage.
Lake, Sky, Garden The war having taken a physical toll, Athena retreats to a magic lake known only to a few, seeking recovery in its restorative waters. She is surprised to see Artemis bathing there too. Perhaps it is the water’s enchanting effects, but for the first time Athena sees the youthful Artemis in a new light, and Artemis, similarly, discovers a new curiosity for Athena. That they were so recently in opposition on a battlefield is forgotten. Each ponders her separate experience, now shared, and each notices differences in the other that spark interest. The wisdom of the elder and the vitality of the younger find connection; their fascination ignites desire, and quickly gives way to passion and a profound euphoria. Athena and Artemis exist only for the eternity of the moment in their embrace, and the troubles of the earth and its restless mortal inhabitants fall away.
Mountain But the immortals on Mount Olympus see an approaching threat, warning that action must be taken by Athena and Artemis, whose attentions at this moment are solely for one another.
Catastrophe, Stag A soldier and his hounds unwittingly stumble upon the lake. A mortal man made mean by the privations of the war, he is driven by mortal men’s insatiable hungers and unquenchable thirsts. Unmoved by the lake’s transcendent beauty, he is drawn instead to the sight of a naked female figure in the water. He advances to find instead Athena and Artemis entwined, and his lust turns quickly to jealousy and then to disgust. Even before they notice him, Athena and Artemis feel something has changed: the waters, once sweet as wine, are soured. Incensed, they turn to face the intruder, and he realizes now that he stands before deities, but his disgust makes him indignant and bold, and he will not yield. His choice is a poor one. Athena and Artemis rise above the man in brilliant rage: Artemis in her fury turns him into a stag, forever to be hunted by his own hounds; Athena drives him from the lake with violent flashes of lightning.
Mountain The immortals of Olympus opine that mortals take too long to learn from their mistakes, erring over and over before true understanding arrives. Though answers lie before them, mortals often seem to turn their heads away.
Forest, Artemis Athena and Artemis, wrenched from their idyll, lament that the sanctity of their union was so thoughtlessly violated, and that the violation emanates out through the earth as exploitation and destruction, creating immense sorrow. They see clearly the grim future that looms and are conflicted by their role in it. Yet Artemis retains the inherent hope of youth, and refuses to give up her faith in nature and humanity’s ability to preserve it.
Mountain The immortals remind the mortals that deities preside to guide them, and that this guidance can be seen on earth in the myriad workings of life, its intricate and elegant actions, interactions, and consequences. As the moon guides the owl, they say.
Sun Athena beseeches humanity to remedy the problems they’ve created. She bids them to love the earth, just as she loves Artemis, and gives the assurance that out of dark ages will come light. The power of truth is greater than the power of destructive forces.
Athena, Part 2 At last, Artemis’ sister deities have arrived and are making themselves known to humanity: the mother, mystery, memory, the messenger, fate, nature, the soul, magic, virtue, youth, the light of day, justice, friendship, and unity. With these, their powerful gifts, they bring hope.