"Condemned And Exiled"
The assemblage of gods gathered in the courtyard of the pantheon, high atop Mount Olympus. In addition to Zeus (supreme ruler of the gods) was his brother, Poseidon (god of the waters, earthquakes, and horses) and his sisters, Hera (Queen of the gods as well as Zeus’ wife) and Demeter (goddess of the harvest). Also in attendance of Zeus’ sons and daughters were Apollo (god of the sun, prophecy, music, medicine and poetry), Athena (goddess of wisdom and the arts), Ares (god of war), Artemis (Apollo’s twin sister and the personification of the Moon), Hermes (god of commerce and travel, cunning and theft, as well as herald and protector of the gods), and Dionysus (chief reveler and god of wine). Rounding out the council were Aphrodite and Eros (goddess and god of desire). On this rare occasion, the council of twelve Olympians were joined by Hades, ruler of the underworld, and a brother to Zeus, Poseidon and Demeter. Lastly, the twelve had invited Hercules to attend, since he was the last to have seen Pegasus safe and sound on Mount Olympus.
With Hermes taking on the role of prosecutor, the other eleven gods sat righteously upon their thrones. Hades slumped in Hermes’ borrowed throne; appearing thoroughly bored by the entire mess. His main distraction was the though of Cleopatra, who was waiting for him in his underground kingdom.
Seated across the courtyard from the deities was Alexander the Great, his head still held high. Hermes was seated next to him.
“My beloved and revered father, Zeus; and my fellow gods and goddesses,” began Hermes, rising to his feet, “we are gathered here today in order to determine the guilt or innocence of this mortal, Alexander the Great of Macedonia.”
“Guilty,” murmured Hades.
“Please, my evil brother,” cautioned Poseidon, “we must first hear the testimony before rendering a decision."
“Testimony, shmestimony. Only a mortal is capable of stealing that winged wretch. A god is incapable of such a terrible act. Tch, tch, tch, tch, tch—shame on you.” Hades shook his head at Alexander the Great. His performance could have won him an Academy Award—or at least the Greek equivalent.
“There is one god capable of such a deed,” reminded Athena.
“Me?” questioned Hades, with a yawn, “do not be foolish. What would I do with a horse underground?”
“Pegasus is more than just a horse,” stated Poseidon angrily.
“Silence!” commanded Zeus. He nodded for Hermes to continue.
“The facts are,” stated Hermes, reading from a tablet, “that Hercules left Pegasus in this very courtyard when he went to the Arctic springs for some water. When he returned, Pegasus was not to be found and has not been seen since.”
“The creature could have wandered off,” shrugged Hades.
“But, as you may or may not already know,” continued Hermes, “there is a witness that states that she spoke to Alexander before he departed with Pegasus down to the surface.”
“And who would that be?” asked Hades, showing just a hint of interest.
“Athena,” replied Hermes.
“Is that true, my dear?” asked Zeus of his daughter. She nodded. “Then there can be no doubt. Alexander of Macedonia, we have afforded you every advantage that a mortal could possibly want. What do you have to say in your defense?”
“I am innocent of the charges brought against me,” stated Alexander, after a brief silence. “But, I cannot refute what Athena as seen, nor shall I try—for to do so would be wrong on my part as a mortal being.”
“Good boy,” smiled Hades, rising from his chair, ready to depart, “let us go—I have got a nice warm spot for you.”
“Not so fast,” stated Zeus.
“But if he is indeed guilty, then he is mine!” laughed Hades.
“If he says he did not do it, I believe him.”
“But Zeus,” urged Hades.
“Therefore,” continued the father of all the gods, “although I must punish you, Alexander of Macedonia, I do not have to condemn you to my evil brother.”
“Zeus!” stated Hades in a very irritated tone.
“Alexander,” continued Zeus, ignoring the god of the underworld, “I hereby exile you from this world that you know. You will not go with my evil brother. You will be sent far away...to another place and time.”
“No, Zeus,” cried Athena, but it was too late. Zeus, raised his hand and out of his palm shot a bolt of lightning, striking the spot where Alexander stood. There was a loud clap of thunder and then silence. Alexander was gone.
“Court adjourned,” stated Hermes, as Zeus walked out of the courtyard. As the other gods followed, Athena called over to Apollo to join her.
“What do you think?” she asked the sun god.
“I think Zeus may have been a bit rash—but Alexander did plead guilty,” he whispered.
“He did not plead guilty, he just refused to refute my testimony,” reminded Athena. “Besides, with him gone, we will never find Pegasus.”
“Hmmmm,” mused Apollo.
“And one last thing that my dear father did not take into account,” continued Athena, “Alexander must be oriented to whatever time he was sent to. Without that, his new society with lock him away as mentally ill.”
“You have a point there,” nodded Apollo, “come with me. Maybe we can convince Zeus to reverse his decision of banishment.”
* * * *
“How could you have lost him!” questioned Cleopatra.
“Zeus sent him into the away—to another place and time! How was I to know he was not going to give him over to me!” stated an angry Hades.
“So this whole thing has been a waste of time?” she asked.
“Leave me! I need to think,” ordered Hades.
“Well, you brought me into the past, surely you can bring us to wherever my future suitor has been exiled.”
“But I do not know where Zeus sent him,” fumed Hades.
“You had better find out,” replied Cleopatra.
Hades looked over to her with the most evil look on his face, “do not forget who made you Queen of the Nile, secretly aiding that pompous Caesar to do away with your idiot brother. Do not forget who has gotten you where you are today. Do not ever speak to me in that tone again.”
“My apologies, Hades,” replied a humbled Cleopatra.
“Too late. You are going back to Egypt. To your own time period.” Red smoke began to emanate from Hades’ nostrils.
“Take this orb,” he continued. “If you feel the need to contact me, use this. It will be quicker than praying to the statue of Anubis and waiting for me to come to Egypt.” Soon the chamber was filled with thick red smoke. The very same smoke that once transported Cleopatra to ancient Greece, now returned her to her precious Alexandra, three centuries in the future.
When the smoke cleared, Cleopatra was once again in the stone temple—alone and angry. She left the interior of the temple, tucking the black orb into her robe. She hurried through her private entrance to her waiting servants. They instantly bowed and then escorted her to her waiting barge. Without a word, she climbed aboard her vessel and disappeared into her chambers. The royal barge immediately set sail back up the Nile toward her palace.
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