Liberation
Prometheus stared bleakly into the night feeling only a sense of dread. He’d long since lost his emotional attachment to anything in this hard world. He’d lost count of how long he’d been chained to the peak of the Caucasus Mountains. Generations, come and gone. Freedom, a distant memory.
His days were a living nightmare, the black of night his only reprieve. He’d known Zeus should not be crossed, but hadn’t realised the depth of his anger, that Zeus would have him bound to this rock for an eternity of agonising torture. But he should have.
That didn’t matter anymore either. What mattered was that mankind had thrived. He’d seen it from his mountain peak and could cope with his torture in the knowledge that man had learnt well how to use the fire he had stolen for them. They’d manipulated it to their advantage and only gained in strength and ability.
He spotted Eosphoros, the Dawn Star, in the distant sky and knew that his mother, Eos, would soon rise from the sea in her chariot. Her horses would shake the water from their wings before soaring into the sky, from where Eos would dispense the morning dew.
His stomach clenched in dread as the sky on the eastern horizon lightened. He heard the cry of the approaching eagle and the beat of his great wings echoed around the mountains in the receding night. Ethon, the mighty Caucasian Eagle would, once more, land before him, tear at his flesh and eat his liver before his eyes. He readied himself to close down his mind, block out the pain. He would weep no more.
Suddenly, he became aware of a new sound. A twang, followed by a whoosh of air in front of his face, repeated again and again. He opened his eyes to see a volley of arrows pass before him and, with a scream, Ethon fell from the sky, never to rise again.
This was a morning for strange sensations, this one a gentle hand upon his shoulder. “Come Prometheus,” said Heracles, “It’s time that you came home.”
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleA brilliant new rendering of an old myth. How wonderful to include Greek mythology in your excellent stories!

I love Greek mythology and you have captured this story beautifully.
Thank you, I can’t imagine the pain he went through. I couldn’t fit in that his body repaired itself every night so the eagle tore him open everyday. Those Greek Gods could certainly dish out cruel and unusual punishment!
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleI think you know Carrie that I have little knowledge of Greek mythology which is one of the reasons I love your stories so much. This is beautifully written and opens up a new world to me. You’ve expressed the pain and torment of Prometheus so well and the ending brought me a deep sense of relief. More please.
Thank you. There are so many stories in mythology to inspire. The stories are fascinating. I’m not so fond of the Roman myths, even though there are many similarities to Greek. Norse and Egyptian mythology is extremely interesting too. I still need to learn about some of the Mayan stuff but my poor brain cell is so overworked ?
I have always wondered if Prometheus was the fire-bringer or the fire-stealer. Were his motives so pure if Zeus was so enraged? Your story portraits his torment perfectly, the eons passing as if on speed-camera, the resignation to his fate is pure sadness. I imagine him stunned and unbelieving when his freedom finally arrives. Your story had brought all these pictures to my mind, I simply loved it!
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleThank you for your kind comment. I think Zeus just didn’t want the human race to evolve and he also didn’t like being tricked. His punishment was certainly cruelly creative.
Nice write Carrie.
Thank you. I do love these myths.
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleThanks for enlightening us about the world of the Greek Gods, Carrie. Your story is fascinating and educational. Who knows what it really meant that Prometheus brought fire (which also represented civilization/knowledge) to humans and why he was so severely punished for it? Could it have a connection with the Christian mythology with Adam and Eve getting forever thrown out of “Paradise” for having acquired knowledge? (Which Andrew Carter writes about in… Read more »
You make the Prometheus myth come alive, Carrie. What a gift you have for descriptive detail. We can feel his hopelessness, which makes his rescue all the more thrilling. I love the sweetness of the last line. Even the Gods long for home. Congratulations on a greatly deserved win!
Thank you, Juma. I was so pleased that you won. Your story was very touching and so beautifully written. Anyway, I really enjoyed writing this story, as I’ve just said to Katy, Prometheus was very insistent that I tell his story rather than that of Eos, and I’ve learned to listen to my protagonists when then speak to me. There are some superb myths, whether Greek, Norse, Roman or Mayan etc, that… Read more »
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleCongratulations, Carrie. It was an honor to see Greek Mythology interlock with the theme of Dawn. Well done!
Thank you, Katy. I love mythology, and there are so many fantastic stories in Greek Mythology. I love trying to create my own stories around the wonderful characters. I just hope I did justice to the Prometheus myth. I must say, he was a very insistent and persuasive protagonist. I’d intended writing about Eos, she was the obvious choice, being the personification of dawn. But I’ve found that when a character speaks… Read more »
Congratulations Carrie, well deserved. I’m so pleased for you.
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleThanks Linda. I was very surprised because there were some fab stories in the shortlst!
Well done and congratulations on your great achievement. You must be feeling so proud. I loved this story.
Thanks Genya, I was a bit worried it wouldn’t be considered family friendly when I submitted it, there are some parts of the myth that just can’t be changed, so it was a huge surprise to get Runner Up!
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleWell done Carrie on being runner up. I’m sure everyone enjoyed your story as much as I did. Eric.
Thanks Eric, there were some brilliant stories shortlisted, so getting runner up feels pretty awesome!
Thank you for taking us to the world of the Greek God. It is old mythology yet still very interesting.
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleThank you for taking the time to comment. Yes, there are so many wonderful mythological stories, many of them begging to be retold ?
And you, Carrie are just the right person to retell them. Can’t wait for your next one!
Thank you ?
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleCongratulations, Carrie.
Fabulous reading on this one ❤ I love stories surrounding Greek mythology and you definitely do it justice!
Thank you. There are so many fantastic myths and legends that can be used as the bones of a story.
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