Author's note:
This short story is more myth than fantasy or Sci-Fi. All characters are over the age of eighteen.
Thank you for reading!
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"Alright everyone, please, take your seats. I know today is the last day of classes, and for some of you," the professor said, looking for a few especially broad smiles among his students, "the last day of your university career."
There was a smattering of jealous groans and congratulations, but as they waned, the professor continued. "Regardless of whether you'll be back on campus in the fall, I believe you'll enjoy today's lecture. Who knows the story of Pandora?" He selected from among the few raised hands. "Yes, Colette, what can you tell us about this myth?"
"All the evils of the world were kept in a box, which Pandora opened, releasing them."
"Evils such as?"
"Disease, sickness. I'm not sure, exactly."
"Right. Hesiod himself didn't specify when he recorded the myth."
"It seems misogynistic," said another student.
"How so?"
"Well, it's a woman releasing the evils, just like Eve tempting Adam with the apple. It's meant to oppress women."
"The myth is commonly interpreted that way, yes. But," the professor continued, pacing along the front of the lecture hall, "what if I told you that Pandora also released good into the world?"
A rustle of surprise moved through the room.
"I've never heard that before," Colette said.
"No one has. Or at least, not until recently. You may have heard me mention that I have a graduate student working in antiquities at the British Museum. He's helping translate newly discovered texts, and it turns out that Hesiod made another mention of Pandora that was only recently identified."
"What does it say?"
"This part of the myth is a bit spicy. If you're offended by sexual content you may leave now. But if you want to get a glimpse of the cutting edge of ancient literature and myth, stick around and I'll share it with you."
No one left.
***
It was like the breath of Hades himself.
Just one month earlier a tranquil Ionian evening had been rent by a nightmarish shriek of pain and lament. A heartbeat later a blast of wind hotter than any from the height of summer blew across Elias's olive farm, carrying with it a stench of sulfur and rot.
In the days and weeks since, Elias and everyone he knew had experienced the evils released by Pandora that day. Livestock fell ill, biting insects arrived in greater numbers than ever before, wells became unreliable, and a dozen other afflictions plagued the people. If the whispers were true, life in Greece would forever suffer under these new miseries.
Still, thought Elias, life was good. He rose from his olive press, stretched, and lifted with each arm an amphora filled with fresh oil. He was healthy, strong, and unlike some of his less fortunate neighbors, his orchard was thriving and the crop generous. Elias took a moment to thank the gods, then carried the amphorae to the cellar.
Tonight, he and Elena would bathe away the day's dust, enjoy a simple meal, and later make love. Though the couple had passed more than a few seasons together his wife still had her beauty. A proud, straight nose and playful eyes were challenged only by her soft, full lips. Her wild, dark hair was so rebellious that most days she had to restrain it with clasps, but when the two made love, she set it free to toss around them.
Only the sameness of their encounters nagged at Elias. After sweet talk and kisses the two would become aroused and ready. Elena would lay on her back, part her thighs, and allow Elias to enter her and pump until they climaxed. In all other ways, Greek life was uncertain and varying, but in the bedroom, there was but a single way.
As Elena tidied up the kitchen she noticed their neighbor through the window. "My heart goes out to Iris."
Elias nodded. Iris's husband Alcides had been injured in battle just the year before. He had returned to Ionia and his wife's side, but the injury had proven too great and he had passed away within the month. Though her grief had ebbed, Iris still cut a lonely figure tending her garden.
The couple went to visit their neighbor, waving to her as they approached and offering dried figs and wine. The three chatted, but as they did so, something quite strange happened. Although all who heard it would later describe the sound as a soft sigh or a moan, it nonetheless reached every corner of the land. Then, moments later, a gentle but insistent breeze swept across them. Elias caught the scent of honey, herbs not in season, and ripe fruits he could not name. His skin tingled at the touch of the breeze and, though it passed, the memory of the sensation seemed to sink deep into him.
"Oh! Oh, my," Iris gasped. "What was that?" She pushed a strand of gold hair behind her ear.
"I don't know," Elena said. "It reminds me of what happened a month ago. First the sound, then the wind."
"But that was an evil sound and a foul wind," Iris said, shuddering at the memory. "This was as if all of spring arrived and passed in a moment."
"And yet lingers," Elena said. She took Elias by the hand. "We're going to go back inside," she said, already tugging her husband away. "May Hera bless you!"
*
Elias knew at once that tonight their lovemaking would have a different character. Unfamiliar, urgent impulses moved within him, and his hands were on Elena's body even before she had finished shedding her clothing. Nor did his wife object. When Elias buried his face into her hair she sighed, and when his hands found her heavy breasts she let out a soulful groan. For a moment the couple remained standing, husband's hands caressing and exploring his wife's body eagerly. Then he urged her forward and the couple tumbled onto the bed.
Their session followed a new script. Elena was slick with arousal, but instead of mounting her, Elias slipped one finger then another into her slit. Rewarded by a gasp, he continued by moving them inside of her, watching the play of bliss on her face. Elena writhed against him, whispering encouragement, moaning, and nibbling at his neck. She reached to his already hard cock, stroking it, drawing it ever closer to her center, and throwing a leg atop Elias to better open herself to him.
