Stone Blind

Athene recalls the gifts that Hephaestus has forged for her, including the one she keeps—a statue of her beloved owl. Hephaestus watches her from afar, wondering if she’ll smash it. Athene’s owl is confused by the statue’s resemblance and jealous of it “stealing” her attention, so it jabs at her fingers.

Alerted by a cursed Medusa’s cries, Sthenno and Euryale run to her cave. Medusa hides her head with her arms, having grown snake hair like her sisters. Sthenno and Euryale acknowledge her grief over her hair. They ask about the transformation, and she blames an unknown goddess—whom they seem to intuit.

Perseus departs on his quest to kill a Gorgon. Danaë tells him to seek his father, Zeus, for help. He searches for a sacred grove where he might find Zeus and encounters two strangers. They introduce themselves as Athene and messenger god Hermes. Athene dismisses Perseus but eventually tells him to approach the elderly Graiai, three sisters who share one eye and one tooth. At the Graiai’s cave, he observes them quarrel over their shared parts. He asks for help finding a Gorgon’s head, and they demur, as the Gorgons are their sisters. Perseus promises to find them extra eyes and teeth for their help. Taking the Graiai’s eye and tooth, he promises to use them to find suitable extras. However, when they tell him to seek the Hesperides, a group of nymphs, he throws away their parts.

The Medusa-Narrator criticizes the reader for sympathizing with Perseus.

Hephaestus smiles at Athene, offering to share what Poseidon said about her earlier. Uninterested, she sits in a wooden chair he offers her, and he sits next to her. Disgusted by his touch, she rises. Hephaestus proposes to Athene, telling her that Zeus has given his approval. He masturbates and ejaculates on her tunic. Filled with shame, she escapes the forge.

Medusa continues to experience pain and visual impairment. She gropes through her cave, helped by Sthenno and Euryale. Medusa’s sisters ask if she would like to remove her eye bandages, hoping to diagnose her. She thinks it unwise.

Gaia studies the bodies of her murdered children, the Giants, and suffers in cataloguing their deaths, tracing each wound and which god made it. Swallowing them with her earthen body, she considers revenge. She ultimately rejects the thought, knowing mortals would suffer if she were to retaliate, and contemplates Hephaestus’ sexual assault of Athene as his semen lands on the earth. Gaia also contemplates Poseidon and discovers how to exact revenge.

The Medusa-Narrator reminds the reader of the difficult terrain near the Graiai and Gorgons. Medusa remains in her cave, refusing to go near water, while the Medusa-Narrator details an unseen island, shielded from mortals and sunlight.

Aided by Athene and Hermes, Perseus travels to Medusa’s unseen island; Athene takes special note of Perseus’ behavior. At the island, he looks for the Hesperides, finding them while swimming. They banter and take his clothes. Knowing of his quest to kill a Gorgon, the Hesperides give Perseus a sword and a golden bag; they tell him to wear Hermes’ winged sandals and offer the death god Hades’ cap, which allows invisibility. Hermes demands that Perseus return his sandals when next they meet. He and Athene point Perseus toward the Gorgons and vanish.

A Nereid describes Cassiope comparing her beauty to that of the water nymphs. The Nereids and Poseidon take offense, and goaded by Amphitrite, Poseidon decides to punish Cassiope by targeting her daughter Andromeda.

Alone in her cave, Medusa removes her eye bandages. She sees vague impressions around her, sensing a bond between her and her snake hair. Recognizing the snakes’ desire to be in the sun, she finally leaves the cave. As Sthenno calls to Medusa, the snakes react with fear, causing her to put her bandages back on.

A crow describes Athene’s child by Hephaestus’ spilled semen—Erichthonius, delivered by Gaia. Athene weaves a basket for Erichthonius, delivering him to King Cecrops of Athens. King Cecrops’ daughter Aglaurus finds the child, only for a snake to slither out and bite her and her two sisters’ feet. The crow reports this incident to Athene, who dislikes crows afterward.

The Medusa-Narrator describes a scorpion statute, with stinger raised.

Medusa discusses monstrosity, beauty, and evil. She reveals that her sight can turn living things to stone, including a scorpion (Part 3, Chapter 38) and two birds (Part 1, Chapter 11 and Part 2, Chapter 24).