The Fate I Changed From a Goddess

I always thought that what I wanted would only happen if the gods and goddesses allowed it. Clotho, the goddess of fate, was who my people relied on the most. If you angered her, what you wanted would not be taken into her account. Your blessings would become curses, and your fate the exact opposite of what you wanted. My mother told me stories of Clotho when I was little, about how she blessed her family and brought good fortune. She also told me about how she bestowed a curse on her best friend when she told my mother “I don’t believe in some dumb gods, they don’t control our lives Lyra, we do, we create our fates.” Of course, Clotho did not appreciate her remark and neither did Hephaestus, the god of fire. Hephaestus brought fire to her house and with that her fate was death. 

My whole life I prayed to the gods for good fortunes like my mother and her family were giving and for my whole life, I have waited for a blessing from them. The priests told the kids at our school that we will know when we are blessed when we can unlock the blessings from all the gods by will. Meaning that, when we want good weather we can have it, when we want life or death we can have it, and so on. All of my people are on the same path to winning favour with the gods and being blessed, but no one has reached it. Clotho has not bestowed this fate upon any of us.

***

I woke up one morning to a thunderstorm, Zeus, the god of thunder, was mad again. He had been mad all week it had seemed. Every morning I woke up to a gloomy day, either raining or foggy. Because of this, people have been offering sacrifices to Zeus to lighten his mood in hopes that sunshine will break through the clouds, but none were successful. I got out of bed and put on the same clothes that I have worn for the past year. We are not supposed to have more than one pair of clothes unless Plutus, the god of wealth, delivers them to us. Typically, he will bring them to us when our one pair outgrows us. 

I went downstairs to see my mother smiling and rushing over to me to hug me. She kissed my head and looked into my deep blue eyes. “Maleeka, are you ready to see what Clotho has in store for you today?!” My mother asked excitedly. I was confused at first, but then it came to me. Today was the celebration of Clotho, her birthday. This meant that

today was the day that all boys and girls who had turned seventeen have their first and biggest fate decided by Clotho. What my mother says happens is there are two bowls one for the boys and the other for the girls. In the bowls are scraps of paper that tell you what you will forever be. The second highest person in status who is below the gods was the king, and he would call out names one by one and pick out a scrap of paper. Whatever it read was what Clotho wanted to be picked and what you would become. My father became a farmer and my mother a weaver. Whoever got king or queen would replace the previous king and queen. And those people who were replaced would become regulars like the people under seventeen.

I nodded toward my mother, but in reality, I wasn’t ready because some people get picked to become sacrifices. “Well, then you better hurry up. We have to leave in twenty minutes top.” My mother said, clapping her hands. I ran along with finishing my usual routine in the morning quicker than ever.

***

My mother and I arrived at the temple where a great band of seventeen-year-old boys and girls, who were separated, stood inside a roped-in barrier while the others who were not having the “big fate” stood around outside the roped-in barrier. I looked at my mother and she smiled and gave me a little nudge to go in with the other girls. I stepped over the rope and headed toward them. 

Soon after, maybe fifteen minutes or so, the ceremony began. Music played, people cheered, and the king and queen walked out onto the platform of the temple above the steps and waved. I looked around me and saw faces of excitement and none whatsoever of terror like my face had.

“Good morning my fellow friends!” the king began, “Today is a very special day for our here boys and girls, today is their Big Fate! But, first, I want to take a moment to honor our lovely Clotho, who has already decided what these young ones shall become. For her, I sacrifice my son, Eli, whose fate was to be a sacrifice to Clotho.” I could see Eli. He was smiling and seemed really excited, as was everyone else but me. Eli stepped up on a sacrificial altar and laid down. The king then was handed a sword by the queen which was made of gold that was only used for sacrifices like this one. He stood in front of the altar and said, “Dear Clotho, I offer Eli, son of Anlee and Marken, up to you.” The king then brought down his sword piercing the stomach of the boy and Eli was dead. I flinched at the sight of the blood streaming down the altar and the cheers of the people around me. This seemed wrong, but I shook that thought out of my brain, Clotho would not like a thought like this. 

“Now,” the king began, “It is time to find out your fate,” He said, pointing to us. He stepped toward the bowls and began calling out names and telling them what Clotho has chosen for them. “Emben Clark, Priest.” He yelled. Being chosen to be a priest was a good thing. It meant your status was ranked third. “Aby Isbell, nurse. Leum Terbine, Builder. Tammy Clay, sacrifice.” I heard a small gasp and saw who had made it. It must have been Tammy because tears were falling down this girl’s eyes. “JJ Avrey, farmer. Nora Bale, provider.” This would continue for hours. Justine Degner would become king and Anna Vaile would become queen. Five other people would be chosen as sacrifices, two of which I knew and three other boys became priests. Then my name was called, “Maleeka Lock, weaver.” I looked behind me to see my mother beaming with joy. She was happy to know that we would get to weave together. 

Another hour later, the ceremony was finished and we were all sent to work. Some went to the hospital, while others were dragged off to be sacrificed in the temple to other gods. Some of these people were excited to be sacrificed. Others screamed and struggled to get out of the priest's grips who were escorting them into the temple.

 I followed my mother and she began telling me all about weaving, but I tuned it all out. I didn’t want to be a weaver. I was never a crafty person, I was always a scientific person. That had always been my strong suit in school. Why did Clotho choose this for me? I couldn’t help but think of the story of my mom’s friend and what she said. 

***

After days of weaving, I began to find myself turning away from the gods. I was angry at them and I stopped praying to them. I was told in school that if we forget or stop praying bad things would immediately happen to us, but it had been days and everything was the same. I began questioning our faith in the gods. Could this all be bogus, could I have chosen my own path the whole time? I pushed that thought out of my head and continued to do my job. 

That night my dream was of myself saying, “It’s all fake, I am on the wrong path, they have tricked us all.” I woke up and sat on the edge of my bed while my legs dangled over the bed. I started thinking if Clotho decided what I do then surely she decided for me to think and feel the way I am now. I thought of all the other gods and how it wasn’t making any sense with what we were taught about in science. And so I decided that the fate the king had given me was not from Clotho but from him randomly picking a scrap of paper. Paper that was produced from a tree and written on with ink, not a god. 

I snuck out of the house, careful not to wake my mother, and headed off into the woods to the path I wanted for myself, the path of science, the path of freedom, the path of my own fate. I am finished listening to what others tell me to do.

***

As years went by, I showed people the true world, and eventually, the gods were no longer a part of anyone's lives, I wiped them out of the world. We all lived in peace, choosing what we wanted to be and when to be it.