Bird Cage

The screech that called out from Ocypete’s fanged maw was echoed by the others who attacked from their perches, spreading their wings as they fell upon their former sisters in a fit of murderous rage. The amazons raised their shields to defend themselves, striking back against claws and fang with spear and swords. Their motions perfectly timed and skillfully parried against their attackers to drive them back.

Aello and Alkyone charged towards their former queen, eyes wild and foaming drool escaping their mouths as they raised claws sharp enough to rend flesh to swipe at Hippolyta. With a blur of motion, she drove her spear out to catch Ocypete off her footing and spun around her heel to raise her shield and block the other two harpies, strike out with her spear to **** them to back off. Falling to all fours like a jungle cat, Ocypete circled the queen and made to pounce, her claws out ready to rake down the queen’s back as she fought off the other two harpies.

“DIE WEAK…”

The strike that cut off her leap stopped the harpy dead in her tracks, shattering teeth and splitting skin when Phillipus delivered a blow with her mace against the offending beast’s face. Dropping her to the ground in a heap, the mace in the warrior woman’s hand spun deftly around her wrist to be used in a back-handed motion and strike the harpy uphanded back up hard enough to send her back to her feet and over onto her back.

“You shall not get closer than THAT ever again, Ocypete.” Declared the Queen’s lover and protector, standing back-to-back with her queen as she faced Alkyone and Aello behind her.

Rolling back to her hands and feet, the wounded harpy screeched like an animal back at the woman, her feathered hackles raised, and her wings spread out to look more intimidating.

“She is WEAK… And ssssso are YOU!” Ocypete slurred, raking her clawed feet in the dirt and taking a swipe at the woman, her claws scraping against the polished plate of her shield with the streak of sparks gritting off its surface.

“Stronger than you sister, strong enough to care.” Phillipus stated sternly. “Even the old one was brave enough to harm you to protect the queen. Why else would we be here? He was LOVED!”

“Love… Love issss TRUE weaknesss….”

“I pity you sister.”

Her eyes going wide, Ocypete screamed and barreled toward the woman. Getting a counter blow in the face with Phillipus’s mace for her troubles.

Bringing her shield up to block a swipe from Aello and swinging her spear out to keep Alkyone back, the queen eyed both opponents warily, trusting that her love kept Ocypete at bay behind her while she faced the two animals in front of her.

The rest of her guards had their hands full with the other harpies who they sparred with, lacking any skill or grace they once had in their attacks, instead acting out like cornered beasts left rabid and unfocused. Slashing and swiping with talons and snapping jaws. How far had her sisters at arms had fallen? How long had they allowed this hatred in them to fester and rot them from the inside out? To fall so low that they not only were poisoned by their own hatred and envy but embraced it. As if to become so ugly within and without was a virtue in itself.

“Come to avenge the old man and hissss spawn?” Hissed Aello, a crooked grin on her thin lips as she hobbled back and forth, looking for an opening to attack. “It is a shame you did not questioned the boy… Hisssss mind was RIPE with answers. So many secrets. There are more like US in man’s world than we realised! Those who would gladly be like usssss… Thissss is the will of the Godsssss!”

“Yessss… The gods CHOSE ussss to be agents of their justice!” Declared Akylone, laughing with split, fanged lips. Admiring her claws as a killer would a knife. “Once the men on thisss island are all dead, sssssoon so will the rest without.”

“The child lives sister… As does his father.”

Frowning, Aello and Alkyone sneered at that revelation. Trading looks as they stepped back but kept their attention trained on the queen, waiting for an opening.

“My daughter told me herself; she and the oracles saved them. The oracles who get their visions from the gods themselves. Do you know what that means?” Raising her shield just right so that the two could look onto the surface of the shield, it showed their reflections back to them, revealing just how ugly they had become. “It means the gods do not favour your actions. You are not their agents; you are their shame. Look at what you’ve become sisters, look at what hatred and cruelty has twisted you into.”

Paused in their attack, the two looked upon their reflections in shock. Hesitantly raising barbed claws to feel their hideous, blistered faces.

“APPEARANCES MEAN NOTHING!” Roared Ocypete, scuttling over to face the queen as Phillipus turned to stand shoulder to shoulder with Hippolyta. “We have lived in this paradise for centuries, biding our time. NOW we have the tools to get back at the men who ruined our lives!”

“That was millennia ago sister.”

“Time meanssss nothing too… SISTER. Now is our chance to…”

Caught off guard, Aello and Ocypete gasped when Alkyone grabbed them both from behind into a **** hold, pulling them back until she was on the ground with both harpies screeching and flailing to break free.

“ALKYONE! What in Hades are you doing?!” Screamed Aello, scratching at Alkyone’s arm to break free but failing to do so, almost as if the harpy felt no pain.

“Sorry ladies, I’ve had a change of heart. Your highness, if its all the same, I think a few years in a dungeon will help us see the light better.” The harpy offered, speaking in a strange accent Hippolyta could not recognise.

Approaching the three and looking to the rest of the harpies pause in their attack, they looked to their three leaders as the queen aimed a spear under Ocypete’s chin.

“Surrender, now!”

Breathing hard and glaring back up to the queen and the spear’s tip at her throat, the harpy let go of Alkyone’s arm and raised them over her feathered head in surrender. Aello did the same, breathing hard as their traitorous cohort smiled a hideous grin.

“See?” Alkyone winked. “Nothing but a little time in a bird cage to get these buzzards cooled down.”