The cave shook as spears and chains clattered against its walls. Seraphina pressed herself against the stone, her heart thundering. The serpents snapped wildly, striking at shadows.
"Bring her out!" a hunter roared. His bronze mask caught the torchlight, gleaming with a divine symbol. "By Apollo's hand, she will be cleansed!"
Cleansed. The word dripped with hatred.
Seraphina's body trembled. Her mother's warnings rang in her head: If they find you, they will not show mercy.
The first man lunged through the cavern entrance, his spear tip burning with sunfire. The heat scorched her skin though it hadn't touched her. In panic, Seraphina lifted her gaze.
She didn't want to — gods, she didn't want to — but her eyes locked with his.
The man froze. His scream curdled in his throat as his flesh hardened, gray crawling over his skin until he was stone. The spear clattered uselessly to the floor.
The other hunters faltered. One stepped back. Another muttered a prayer. Fear cracked their bravado.
"She bears her mother's curse!" one cried. "Do not meet her gaze!"
They threw their nets instead — threads glowing with golden fire, woven from prayers to Apollo. They wrapped around her arms, burning like molten chains. Seraphina cried out, the pain blistering her skin. The serpents struck at the nets, biting deep, but the ropes only sparked brighter.
"I don't want this!" she sobbed, stumbling back. "Leave me alone!"
The hunters only pressed forward, shields raised, chants spilling from their lips.
The serpents screamed in unison. Something inside Seraphina snapped. A surge of power burst from her chest, rattling the cavern walls. Light fractured. Stone rained from the ceiling.
And in the chaos, she ran.
She bolted through a narrow tunnel, her serpents lashing at her shoulders. The hunters shouted behind her, their torches flaring like suns in the dark. One net grazed her ankle, searing her skin, but she tore free.
The night air struck her face as she burst from the cave. Rain lashed down, lightning splitting the sky. The cliffs were slick, jagged, deadly, but she didn't stop. The hunters poured after her, their voices carried on the storm.
"After her! She cannot escape the will of Olympus!"
Seraphina's feet bled on the sharp rocks. Her lungs burned. Her serpents hissed directions, warning of danger.
She plunged into the forest. Branches whipped her face, tearing at her arms. At last, the shouts grew fainter. Still, she ran until her legs gave way. She collapsed beside a river, gasping, trembling, every muscle on fire.
Her serpents curled around her, quiet now, pressing against her skin as if to comfort her.
Tears blurred her vision. "Why won't they let me live?" she whispered. "Why must I always be hunted?"
A voice answered.
"Are you… crying?"
Seraphina's head snapped up. The serpents reared, hissing violently.
A boy stood in the shadows of the trees. He carried a walking stick, tapping it softly against the earth. His pale eyes did not focus on her.
"I-I didn't mean to intrude," he said, raising one hand nervously. His voice was gentle, uncertain. "I just heard someone weeping."
Seraphina stumbled back, heart racing. "Stay away."
The boy tilted his head. "You sound… frightened. Why?"
Her serpents hissed louder, but the boy didn't move. He stepped closer, unafraid, his blind eyes gazing past her.
"Are you hurt?"
"No," Seraphina whispered. Her voice cracked. "I'm… I'm dangerous."
The boy's lips curved into a faint smile. "Dangerous? To me? I can't even see you."
The words struck her like a blow.
For the first time, someone didn't flinch. Someone didn't scream.
Her serpents quieted, their tongues flicking curiously in the boy's direction.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"…Seraphina."
He tapped his stick against the ground. "I'm Dorian. And unless you'd rather be alone… maybe I could sit with you awhile."
Seraphina stared at him, torn between fear and longing. Her whole life had been shadows and screams, but this… this felt different.
"Yes," she whispered, her throat tight. "Stay."
And so, by the river under the storm's fading glow, the cursed daughter of Medusa found her first friend.