Helia’s hands shook as she reached to brush away the tears rolling down Nesrine’s pale cheeks as she let out a cry, looking down, avoiding Helia’s gaze, hands moving quickly to try and put pressure on the wound through her abdomen.
“Helia, your side—“
“I know,” Helia said, laughing weakly. It was clear she didn’t have the strength to stand, as the stain of blood bloomed further into her tunic. The hero that had speared him was now wandering around the temple, having fought Helia in an attempt to get to Nesrine. To end her life. “He uh, got me pretty bad.”
“No,” Nesrine whispered with growing horror. “No, no, please I— have to save you, we have to stop the bleeding— What are you doing?” frantically ripping her own tunic to stop her lover’s blood spilling by her side.
Another sob left Nesrine’s mouth as she felt Helia’s fingers gentle attempt to tug at her face, yearning for each other’s eyes to meet “Have you gone insane?!”
“I want to see your eyes, Nes, my love,” Helia said firmly. Nesrine’s eyes squeezed together as she shook her head, feeling the warm blood from Helia’s wound on her hands as she let out a silent sob.
“You’ll die,” Nesrine told her, fear racking her body while reaching out to place her hands on Helia’s hips in an attempt to wrap her wound. It was a pathetic attempt on her behalf, however, as she couldn’t see.
“Nes— Nesrine, please stop, I can’t bear to see you like this.” Helia whispered softly, clutching one of Nesrine’s hands. She stilled, tears still streaming down her cheeks. Helia squeezed Nesrine’s hand comfortingly in hopes that her lover would stop staining the skin of her cheeks. “I’m dying a-already, Nes” Helia’s voice pleaded as Nesrine shook her head in denial, tears now stinging her eyes.
“No, no, I can save you, I can fix this wound, please let me—“
“Nesrine, dearest,” Helia whispered softly, gently drawing her into her warm embrace. Nesrine’s head, buried into Helia’s chest, whimpering a silent plea to Athena to spare the life of her beloved. “You can’t fix this, I’m going to die and nothing is going to change that. I need to see your eyes before I die, please.”
“You’ll become stone,” Nesrine choked on her own words quietly, like a shard in her heart, wounding the depths of her soul in the process.
“I know,” Helia said softly. “But I’ll be able to look into the eyes of the person I love and that’s a much kinder way to die than painful bleeding out in your arms.”
“Please let me,” she pleaded, wanting nothing more than to die in Nesrine’s arms. “I wish to see your face, all of it, just once before I die, my dear.”
Nesrine swallowed deeply before letting out a panicked chuckle. “I— you do know I’m a monster, don’t you? You’ll turn to stone. It’s not pleasant, trust me. After all, I’m the one who first saw the faces of the others who looked.”
“They were trying to kill you out of fear,” Helia said calmly, pulling away from Nesrine. “How do you expect me to fear the one I love most? I love you, more than any treasures on this island. Your eyes would be anything but terrifying to me, but not seeing them— see that, dearest, would shatter me.” Helia’s thumb grazed softly across the surface of Nesrine’s pale cheek, kissing it even softer. “Trust me,” She mumbled.
“I can’t lose you,” Nesrine muttered.
“You’ll never lose me,” Helia replied just as gently, Her weight partially supported by Nesrine. “ I’ll always be with you in spirit, watching over you. But please,” she swallowed and in her next words, the weakness and vulnerability pooling in Helia’s voice. “Grant me this small mercy, ruin me one last time.”
Nesrine bunched up the bloody fabric of Helia’s tunic in her fist before kissing her lips. As she pulled away, there was a tormenting silence between the two. Suddenly, Helia cupped the sides of Nesrines tender hands, urging her forward again, her lips brushing hers in such a gentle manner that sent a shiver down her spine with the knowledge that they would be apart for eternity.
When Nesrine pulled away her eyes opened and met with Helia’s shining, dark ones. A smile formed on her face as Nesrine’s eyes met hers, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear, his gaze adoring. Nesrine could hear the cracking of her skin as it began to harden.
“What did I say?” Helia asked , causing Nesrine to let out a sob as she watched the girl she loved begin to turn to stone. “Breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking.”
“I’m so sorry,” Nesrine apologised, tears blurring her vision. Helia shook her head, a smile still visible even to her blurred vision.
“Don’t be,” she said to her. “Thank you, for letting me love you, Nesrine.”
The girl Nesrine loved with every atom of her being, was now made of stone.
Nesrine let out a howl of grief and sank to the floor as she was curled up by the cold, stone remains of her lover. Nesrine’s hair, sensing her newfound distress, transformed into a mass of writhing snakes that hissed and attempted to sooth her as she mourned. The red string that connected Nesrine to Helia slowly disappeared, the last remnants of their love drifted away in the distance.
Further away She could hear the footsteps of an approaching man. She knew who it was. A hero who had been talked about throughout the lands. Even his name had reached Nesrine in her isolated home. Ferhat, the descendant of Perseus.
‘you ought to act quickly and turn him to stone,’ one snake advised . ‘If you don’t he will behead you and disgrace you, he will use your head as a weapon and defile you and your name and you shall be regarded as a monster forevermore.’
“I am a monster,” Nesrine sighed slowly.
The snake was right.
She knew mortals, and the terrible things heroes would do for glory. Ferhat would kill her in whatever way he desired and she would be powerless to stop it, the same way Medusa had been powerless to the ones who had overpowered her centuries ago.
Nesrine’s eyes drifted up to the wound in Helia’s side, now appearing to be carved from stone. The hero that was approaching you was the monster that had killed her lover, Helia. This was the man that had so cruelly taken Helia’s precious life, a blade laced with the poison to kill a gorgon, a monster. Nesrine could never grant Ferhat the pleasure to take hers. That power layed only in Nesrine’s hands.
“It’ll be quick to do,” Nesrine said quietly as the sound of Ferhat’s footsteps approached her. “Forgive me.” Nesrine added, She wasn’t sure who she was trying to ask forgiveness from. Helia? The people who had died because of her? Herself? Athena? None of it mattered anymore. The only matter of importance was power. It’s a funny thing, power. A thing that has mortal heroes shackled to immoral ways, knowing that they would never face the consequences of fingers pointed at them in accusations. Instead they were praised, in fact, put on pedestals and worshipped.
Nesrine looked up at Helia’s statue, eternal love so clearly etched into her features. Nesrine smiled at the sight, tears welling up in her eyes. “Thank you for loving me in this lifetime, dearest Helia, ” she told her. Nesrine’s hands trembled as she reached for the blade at her hip and brought it up to her neck.
