Chapter 7: Sometime in 1102 BC

A fist slammed onto the table. “Tha to po xaná ... King Aegeus, you have lost this war! There will be no terms given to you. My armies have beaten you. Surrender!”

It was a dark night after a significant battle in which hundreds to thousands lay dead somewhere in the land off of Athens, Greece of today.

Aegeus sighed as he looked down onto the marble table. He sat with his generals as he spoke with Minos across the table. Ariadne, the daughter of Minos, along with her sister Phaedra, and other generals in support of Crete, stood behind Minos as he discussed the end of the war between Crete and Attica. It was in the middle of a night as both sides met to discuss the surrender of Attican forces. Campfires burned on both sides as the fate of an army was being discussed. King Aegeus had called a truce or watched as he himself and his army get slaughtered. Minos agreed to the discussion of terms.

Aegeus sighed, “So much death ... we had no hope of winning against your might King Minos.” His voice was gravely and sad. A tear rolled down his face.

Ariadne stood in her human form, along with her sister and father. She, along with her sister, stood with a face of contempt. She also, along with her sister, wore her Greek tunic or chiton woven by herself with the finest silk. She stood and watched the negotiation take place.

An angry look filled the King of Crete’s face “That will teach you for killing my son!”

Aegeus held his hands up “We were not responsible for the death of your son Minos!”

“That is King Minos!” he slammed the fist on the table again.

Phaedra serving as a form of intermediary, went to the center of the table. “Father, we understand your anger towards the loss of Androgeus, but are they truly to blame for his death?”

The King holding his anger, looked down at the table before he looked up again. “He died by your hands. The people of Attica were responsible for his death. I adopted that boy, raised him as my own. I loved that boy.”

Ariadne looked across the table and saw the most celebrated soldier fighting for the side of the Atticans, Theseus, son of King Aegeus. He wore the best armor the Atticans could ever make. Even the best, however, was no match against the superior forces of King Mino’s army. Their eyes met as she blushed.

Ariadne snapped back to attention as she tried to calm her father down. She took her hands and put them behind her back as a faint amount of light came from her hands. She brandished two glasses of wine as she went to the table. “Father, King Aegeus ... this war is over. The Atticans have lost, let them go in peace, you have proven your point.”

She placed the two glasses of wine in the center beside the hands of both Kings. Minos sat in his chair and held the glass of wine. Aegeus looked down.

“I swear on Zeus, that your son’s death was a tragic one. He volunteered for the assignment that resulted in his death. I did not order him to do so.”

Minos snapped back. “Then tell me the whole story ... no lies this time. What did he volunteer to do? What did he do to get himself killed?”

“The Marathonian Bull went on a rampage killing forty people in our village. We sent our best men to slay it. No one came back alive. We were powerless against it. We had no wa...”

Minos held anger in his eyes. “Lies ... all lies.”

Ariadne and Phaedra looked at each other in shock. They had never heard this side of the story.

Phaedra jumped in, “Father ... we need to hear about this. King Aegeus ... please tell us again. What was that bull?”

Aegeus nodded, “It was the Marathonian Bull. He attacked one of our villages and slaughtered forty villagers.”

Ariadne looked down in disgust. She had a horrifying thought of everything that just transpired. Thousands of soldiers lie dead from both sides of the war. King Minos had just won a great battle that culminated between the nation of Crete and Attica. Minos had declared war on King Aegeus in a revenge spree. Rumors circulated that King Aegeus had ordered Mino’s adopted son Androgeus to kill a monster that was terrorizing Attica’s countryside, knowing that he would die in the process.

A villager found Androgeus’s body crumpled mangled almost beyond recognition was identified correctly and returned to King Minos to see. When the rumors circulated, he blamed the Atticans. There was no hope for Attica. Crete held a more powerful navy and had a more powerful army.

A tear rolled down Ariadne as she said quietlyt to herself, “Grandfather ... why? Why did you attack those villagers? I sense that Aegeus is telling the truth at this part. Did you go, insane grandpa? Did your senile and age dictate your actions when you killed those people? If we had only known, we would have sent our best men or even family to put you down. Now hundreds lie dead, and the fate of an entire army is being decided. Androgeus did not know who he was going after. He thought he was going after an ordinary bull. Father, why did you not tell him?”

“What did Androgeus do when he learned of the Marathonian Bull and its actions?” Phaedra continued to ask. “Please tell us.”

Minos lifted his hand “Don’t bother asking them; they are more lies just to save themselves from my sword.”

“We held meetings in the town square,” Aegeus said professionally. “We placed a bounty on the bull’s head. Androgeus was among those volunteers. He asked to go and slay it. He was hoping that...” He was determined to get through to Minos. “He said that he wanted to impress you, King Minos. He said that he wanted to prove that he was more than just a mortal ... whatever that means. We swear it. We told him that it was dangerous ... beyond dangerous.”

Phaedra once again looked at Ariadne. She nodded to her. They had to regain their composure to the truth.

Phaedra and Ariadne decided to put their hands on the table and look at their father.

Phaedra was the first to speak to Minos. “Father ... he is telling the truth. Androgeus was always known to be headstrong. The Atticans did not know that. We ... the family never told him what the Marathonian Bull was. If he knew, then he would not have gotten himself killed. This battle ... it was for nothing. We must face reality. We lost our brother in an attempt to kill o ... to kill the Marathonian Bull. You know this to be true. The King has sworn it to Zeus himself.”

“Father, we must let this battle, this conflict come to an end,” Ariadne added. “I believe that the Aegeus is telling the truth. Please father ... please for the love of all the gods ... let this conflict come to an end.”

King Minos closed his eyes and sighed. He thought for a full minute as his fingers tapped the table. A small smirk developed on his face. Then he opened his eyes and looked at Aegeus. “Very well ... I needed to have some of my family here so they could hear and ridicule your defeat. I wanted to enjoy my revenge in stopping your people that ordered my son’s and their brother’s death,” as he pointed to his daughters. “In the end, they convinced me to spare your army on certain conditions. Ariadne and Phaedra, I want you to leave the table; there is no more reason to have you here. We have terms to discuss with one another.”