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Athens, Greece
267 BC
Few times in this city's history have the barbarians made it past the gates, so to speak. But today, General Heruli and his thugs are burning everything in sight.
For thousands of years, Athens has been a place for the intellectual, for the lofty thinkers and artisans of the classical world. It is here that some of the greatest acheivments in human history have been made. But Heruli's men don't care about these things. They are taken by insatiable bloodlust. So they pillage and burn and rape with impunity as helpless citizens scramble for refuge that doesn't exist.
Athens is crumbling.
In a temple near the city center, a priest is down on bended knees before a great marble statue. The horrible din of destruction is drawing nearer with every moment, and he knows his time is short. If Athens is to be saved -- if there is any hope remaining for this once-great city -- he knows that he must work quickly.
The statue is pure and white, pristine, just like the goddess it iconifies. Standing at a hundred feet, it is a fitting embodiment of the city's namesake, its first and most important patron: Athena.
For now this monument stands dormant. But the priest kneeling before it knows how to summon Athena Herself from Mount Olympus and imbue the immobile stone with Her living essence. It is sacred knowledge, passed down through generations by the highest order of temple scholars, and is only ever to be used in the most dire circumstances. To call Athena down from her throne for a trifle would mean certain death. Even calling Her down for this, the destruction of Her city, is a risk. But the priest must take it. There is nothing else to be done.
267 BC
Few times in this city's history have the barbarians made it past the gates, so to speak. But today, General Heruli and his thugs are burning everything in sight.
For thousands of years, Athens has been a place for the intellectual, for the lofty thinkers and artisans of the classical world. It is here that some of the greatest acheivments in human history have been made. But Heruli's men don't care about these things. They are taken by insatiable bloodlust. So they pillage and burn and rape with impunity as helpless citizens scramble for refuge that doesn't exist.
Athens is crumbling.
In a temple near the city center, a priest is down on bended knees before a great marble statue. The horrible din of destruction is drawing nearer with every moment, and he knows his time is short. If Athens is to be saved -- if there is any hope remaining for this once-great city -- he knows that he must work quickly.
The statue is pure and white, pristine, just like the goddess it iconifies. Standing at a hundred feet, it is a fitting embodiment of the city's namesake, its first and most important patron: Athena.
For now this monument stands dormant. But the priest kneeling before it knows how to summon Athena Herself from Mount Olympus and imbue the immobile stone with Her living essence. It is sacred knowledge, passed down through generations by the highest order of temple scholars, and is only ever to be used in the most dire circumstances. To call Athena down from her throne for a trifle would mean certain death. Even calling Her down for this, the destruction of Her city, is a risk. But the priest must take it. There is nothing else to be done.
