Medusa - A shade of Black

I was not always like this. Once I was sweet, kind and innocent...well...as innocent as any person could be, born into a world of misplaced dreams and warped expectations.

Thrown into a potpourri of squirming, putrid human existence, forced to conform to their archaic rules and unholy wretched carousel of dissonant repetitive, endless days and nights. I slowly began to hunger for more, and as my evolved salivation sought the chalice of immortality, I began to change. My soul craved darkness, my body hungered for divine sustenance.

~~~

I shall tell of how I became evil incarnate and a voice of justice. A delicious duality to be savored.

It is a modern 21st century. Medusa was not the fearsome gorgon of ancient myths but a fiercely intelligent and independent woman named Medesa, a top-tier geneticist working at Gorgon Biotech, a cutting-edge research facility specializing in genetic modifications and advancements.

Medesa’s brilliance and dedication were unmatched, but the world she navigated was rife with jealousy and hidden agendas. Her groundbreaking work on gene therapy, which had the potential to eradicate genetic disorders, drew the envy of her male colleagues. Despite her contributions, Medesa often found herself belittled and isolated in the male-dominated industry. But she never dwelled upon the pettiness of humanity, the small-mindedness which kept some people mired in ugliness, rendering them unable to see beyond their own ego and self-righteousness. Medesa just did what she had to do.

Yet, the very essence of the audacity of her independence grated more on the fabric of her colleagues nerves than did her success. She never flaunted her brilliance, never purposely imposed her superior intellect or project herself in any way as condescending, haughty or patronizing. Maybe if she had, they would have had a concrete reason to hate and despise her.

The very thing that made her a better person, was the thing that made them see her as a threat.

During the course of her work, Medesa accidentally stumbled upon a conspiracy within Gorgon Biotech. The CEO, a powerful and corrupt figure named Poseidon Blake, along with other colleagues, were diverting funds and research for nefarious purposes, including unauthorized human experimentation. Medesa found herself caught up in a web of deceit which she wanted no part of. Her better judgement said ignore it, they already hate you as it is, yet she was driven by a deep sense of justice.

The evidence kept mounting, the thought of them duping unsuspecting, people in dire need to use as lab rats grated on her nerves. More and more Medesa became unable to ignore the situation. She continued to gather whatever evidence she could to expose Poseidon’s treachery and deceit. But the blackguard had spies everywhere, as careful as she had been, they found out her plans.

Before she could go public, Poseidon learned of her intentions. In a bid to silence her, he orchestrated a scheme to discredit Medesa and ruin her career. With his influence, he spread rumors that Medea's research was fraudulent, and postulated that she should face professional exile. The evidence against her was so overwhelming that her reputation was tarnished and her research rejected.

Desperate and betrayed, Medesa retreated to an abandoned lab on the outskirts of the city. There, she continued her research in secret, determined to prove her innocence and bring Poseidon and his cronies to justice.

But unknown to her, Poseidon's spies had been watching her every move. They could have reported her continued work to the science community or the government, but they had a better plan in mind, one that would change the components of her experiments.

One fateful night, they snuck into her lab and poured the combined venom of the Black Mamba and Inland Taipan into her solutions. They fully expected that Medesa would be working with lab animals which would become corrupted and perhaps attack or kill her. No one could have expected that she would use it on herself.

The Inland Taipan and the Black Mamba are the deadliest snakes in the world. Their bites can kill humans faster than any other snake species in the world among recorded human victims. Although the Taipan's venom is stronger than the Mamba's, the Black Mamba's bite can kill a human in much lesser time.

The stress and isolation began to take their toll, and Medesa grew impatient, restless, unable to cope with the intense pressure as deep anger and resentment threatened to consume her very soul. So she made the unwise decision to try her experiment on herself. She would show them, she would speed up the results of the animal trials by enhancing her own genetic code with her trial serum. If she could effectively combine and sequence the code to interact with the elements of the serum, her blood could cure an untold number of illnesses.

She knew that it could work. It did with her rats.

Ah! If only Medesa had done this a week ago, or even a few days ago, it probably would have worked just the way that she had planned. But that, unfortunately, was before the Gorgon industry jackasses had meddled with her work, and so she prepared the needles.

The experiment, which on all accounts should have killed her, went completely in a different direction. Miraculously, or tragically, depending on whose view it was, there were horrific and unintended consequences.

Medesa felt the pain of a thousand needles pierce her brain, bright lights of sheer agony blinded her eyes temporarily. She fell to the floor, writhing in pain...curled in the fetal position and gripping her stomach with both hands, she mercifully passed out. In all probability, the venom should have spread to her limbs within minutes, shutting down her nervous system, then bring on awful convulsions and paralysis, leading to a horrible suffocating death.

But instead, when combined with the properties of whatever concoction that she had brewed, Medesa’s DNA transformed, bestowing her with some sort of super power. She slept for two days. When she finally awoke, she knew that something had changed, Her body felt like a thousand volts of energy had been injected into it. Moving to the mirror quickly, her breath caught in her throat.

Her hair, once a cascade of curls, now moved like living serpents, each strand seeming to have a life all it's own. She clamped both of her hands over her mouth as she screamed. The snakes writhed with her every movement or sound. Her feet gave way under her and she sat on the floor, curling her legs beneath her. Distress and grief bathed her in a cloak of fog.

Medesa hadn't yet figured it out yet, but luckily for her, unlike the mythical Medusa, whose own stare could turn her to stone, her snakes only hissed their willingness to obey. Yes, she may look like a monster to the world, but what misery could she bring to Gorgon Biotech's top echelon of egotistical monsters.

She had to assume that her work had been tampered with, her test animals never had this kind of reaction. But she can test for that later. As things looked now, it must be the result of some kind of snake venom.

After a few minutes, she again approached the mirror. Standing there, her head writhing, hissing and coiling, she felt a power that transcended her entire being. A snake, much larger than the others, detached itself and slithered to her shoulder, she felt no fear, as if parts of her were imprinted and intertwined with the very essence of the creature.

"Medesa. You are Medusa reincarnated". The snake hissed.

"Medusa", she repeated. Now rebirthed, she stood taller, shoulders ramrod straight. The snake was right, she thought, Medesa died as soon as she drank that serum.

"What do I do with you guys if I need to go out in public". She enquired of the head filled with squirming entities.

As if on cue, the snakes all transformed back to her regular hair. Medusa jumped around in sheer euphoric bliss. What a favor those idiots had done her...oh, if only they knew what awaited them.

Feeling fully energized, for she could not stay still, and extremely thirsty, Medesa drank a glass of water, changed into jogging pants and went for a long run.

She now possessed the power to control and manipulate others through eye contact...a modern-day twist on the ancient Medusa turning people to stone.

Embracing her transformation, Medesa donned the moniker "Medusa" and began her quest for vengeance. She began her task to target those who had wronged her, using her powers to expose their misdeeds and bring justice to the victims of Gorgon Biotech's unethical practices. She would be a vigilante hero fighting against corruption and inequality.

Medusa's would become a voice of lone resistance and empowerment, standing up against injustice. She had found the courage to challenge the status quo and fight for what is right.

A woman daring to defy the odds. Medesa would disappear when she needed to. Medusa reborn...interchangeable...would emerge!