Phaedra looked up at the towering statue above her, intrigued by the amazing craftsmanship of the entire piece, but especially impressed by the intense facial features imposed upon the statue. If she had been a small girl still, she would have been terrified that the statue of Zeus would come to life and crush her beneath his immense fist. It was unreal how angry and intimidating a mere statue could look, but it could not be denied that the life-like sculpture of Zeus could give even the most war-hardened warrior the chills.

Phaedra had spent her whole life in Zaesria, but she had never been allowed to enter any of the gods' temples until that day. She had finally reached the age of 18 years, and was now allowed to enter into the sacred ground the villagers had dedicated to the gods in order to pray to them and make daily sacrifices. But, as she looked upon the stone face of the god in front of her, Phaedra did not feel the faith within her that so many of her peers had described. Instead, she felt nothing but disappointment. Despite years of being taught about them, the gods did not impress her as much as her father expected them to.

Turning her head, Phaedra directed her scrutiny to the blind man next to her. He leaned against the pillar, his hands grasping the familiar stone as he quietly waited for her to obtain some kind of astonishing revelation. But, instead the only thing she acquired was an overwhelming sense of curiosity.

"Grisha," she said, gaining his attention instantaneously.

"Yes young one?" he responded, turning his head in the direction of her voice. Grisha was extremely old, easily the oldest within the village. And, being the village prophet, he had an abundance of knowledge. Sometimes, it was even rumored that he had been given the gift of immortality from the gods so that he could share his gift of foresight for generations to come.

"Why don't the gods help us?" Phaedra asked.

The old man's content expression quickly changed to shock. "What do you mean child?"

The girl shifted nervously, wondering if her resolve would hold out to speak her mind. "What I mean, wise one, is that we face the difficulties of life every day. If the gods are all powerful, why do they leave us to face such sufferings alone? Why do they put our town through such misery when we show such devotion to them?"

Grisha gasped and Phaedra immediately felt ashamed that she had said anything at all. If her father had heard her speak such profanities she would be shamed for years to come.

"The gods work in mysterious ways, this is true, but we must never allow doubt to cloud our devotion to them. Heed my words, child; never question the will of the gods. How could we, as mere mortals, even hope to fathom the actions and motives of the gods?"

"We cannot," she mumbled in response, her mind unconsciously pondering another question. But, it was too terrible to even consider asking, she would never-

"What is it, young one?" Grisha said with a sigh, the ghost of a smile playing on his lips, "You gnaw on a question like a dog chews on a bone. You are still learning, and in order to learn you must ask questions. So child, ask what is on your mind and I will answer to the best of my ability."

Phaedra's stomach twisted as she fought to keep her courage up. It couldn't possibly be that hard to ask a question, so why did her throat constrict so much? Finally, she took a deep breath and spoke as quickly as she could.

"Howdoweknowthatthegodsarereal."

"What? Speak slower girl."

It was too late to go back now, so once more inhaling as much air as possible, Phaedra said timidly, "How do we know that the gods are real?"

His reaction was worse than she could ever have imagined. Grisha grabbed his heart and fell against the pillar behind him. His eyes opened wide, as if her words had shocked him so much that he needed to see her face to know if she was speaking seriously or not. But, his opaque eyes only saw darkness like always, and he made up for this by taking long breathes through his nose and blowing them out through his mouth.

She could not stand his response, so Phaedra attempted to explain herself, saying, "It's just, there's no real proof that they exist, is there? We face such hardships every day and they never help us. They allow this to continue, and who knows, they probably cause it to happen! I just want to know if they are actually there. And, if they are, then they must be terrible gods to allow their people to suffer through-"

"Stop!" Grisha gasped, staggering toward her blindly, "That will be enough! You have offended the gods! You shame them with your words! If you are so blind that you cannot see how the gods help us then you can leave my presence immediately! Go! I refuse to be in your presence any longer! Be gone!"

Tears began to cloud her vision as she stood from the stone floor and dashed out of the temple. Her shimmering dress flowed behind her as the warm air caressed the fabric. Phaedra ran towards the water, the only thing she could see clearly, and when she reached the sand shore she collapsed to the ground and let her tears flow freely.

"Why?" She asked herself, "Why do I have to wonder so much? Why can't I just believe like everyone else?"

As her tears increased and a slight hiccup began to hitch her breath, Phaedra couldn't help but reflect on Grisha's words. He would never allow her to return now. She had looked forward to visiting the temple since she could walk, and now she had ruined her chance on her first day.

"I need proof," Phaedra mumbled, to distressed to care that she was speaking to herself, "I need to know that my failure wasn't for nothing."

Unable to face her father, Phaedra stayed on the shore until late into the night. The moonlight reflected off the waves and helped to calm her racing heart and mind. It wasn't until the tide had reached its highest that Phaedra found the motivation to stand up.

A single splash echoed through the night. Not the sound of the waves crashing against each other, but the splash of something colliding with the surface of the water. She immediately jumped to her feet and scanned the water closest to her, unsure of what could have made the sound. After a few moments, it happened again, but this time she was able to spot what made the disturbance.

A flash of gold flew above the water before plunging back into its depths. Phaedra's heart leaped with excitement as she realized what it was she was seeing.

A fish.

She had never seen a fish in her life; they were such rarities in Zaesria. If she could only catch it and bring it to her father then maybe, just maybe, he would forgive her for her wrongdoings. It was this hope that drove her to wade out into the water and swim towards the place where she had spotted the fish.

The water was cold, but not unbearable. Phaedra's dress slowed her down and made it hard to kick through the frigid water, but she kept going nonetheless. Determination flooded her veins as the fish jumped once more mere feet in front of her, its scales scattering the moonlight in multiple directions. It was so beautiful, one of the most spectacular things she had ever seen. But, as it made contact with the water once more, the salty water splashed straight into her eyes, effectively blinding her for a few seconds.

Phaedra shouted in surprise and furiously rubbed her eyes, unaware of the fish slowly circling her feet. When she finally cleared her vision, her stomach dropped in disappointment as for a moment she thought that she had lost the fish. Sighing in defeat, she turned around and prepared to swim back to shore when she felt her foot brush against something solid.

Suddenly, a force grabbed ahold of her leg. She screamed, releasing all the breath in her lungs as she was pulled into the water. Fear plagued her heart as precious air bubbles escaped from her open mouth as she sank deeper and deeper. The water showed no light beneath its surface and after struggling to be released, Phaedra could not tell which direction was up and which was down. Her lungs burned as she strained and longed for the fresh air above, but she was not able to free herself from the mysterious force's clutches. Phaedra held her breath for as long as she could, but her body finally turned against her as she lost consciousness and let her final breath escape her lips.