echidna, the mother of monsters

There are no ancient depictions of Echidna that survived to the modern era. Authors and historians have tried to recreate her, each with their own perception of the chaos she wrought, and the beauty she held. None could come close to all that Echidna had been or how her story ended. Mother of Monsters was the title she’d been given, as her children were deemed abominations in the stories told by playwrights, authors, and historians, to give their so-called heroes enemies to fight against. Her husband, Typhon, illustrious as he’d been also fell to the hands of those “heroes” heralded by the populace but damned in her eyes. Lost without her family, her grief gave way to pure and unadulterated hatred as she turned her sights onto the Chaos that emboldened these “heroes” to fulfill their desires.
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With the lower half of a snake and the upper half of a beautiful fair-skinned woman, Echidna was considered an abomination herself, and a “champion” fueled by Chaos’s whispering came to rid the world of her presence. She deemed humanity as the greatest evil and the true monster — facing her would-be killer as one of many who’d fall at her hands. What happened after that is lost to time, as both Echidna and the “champion” were buried beneath the Earth as her fury shook the cavern around them and buried them both alive.[break][break]
Many heroes were lost to the annals of time, torn to pieces by Echidna’s anguish and pride. Her effigy was placed among her children’s as monsters, laid low by righteous heroes who’d done the world a great justice. Though, with her dying breath, Echidna swore she would have vengeance for her children and ensure that no mother would face the grief she’d endured.

claudia, the motherless child

Claudia Knight, ward of the city of New Paris, was born on November 27th and abandoned in an alleyway. If not for her crying, and the arrival of several stray cats who’d curled up near her, passerbys wouldn’t have noticed that she was even there. She’d been taken to the nearest hospital and cleaned up before being shipped off to a hospital. There was no identification and very little to go off of in terms of finding her parents. At twenty-four, Claudia would say that she was better off without them.[break][break]
Her upbringing was tumultuous. There were ups and downs that she had fairly little control over. Growing up in a group home, she clashed with some of the other girls for various reasons. Some picked at her hair or the fairness of her skin, calling her ‘Snow White’ to her displeasure. On more than one occasion, she retaliated whether with words or actions, it depended on her mood. More than once, her caretakers asked her if she took pleasure in watching others hurt.[break][break]
She didn’t but there was a kind of joy that came with seeing justice followed through. With a careful shrug, she says unapologetically, ”They had it coming.”[break][break]

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Families adopted her on and off throughout the years, bringing her back after the trial period when she didn’t quite mesh with their family. There was always something wrong. Unable to get along with girls her age, picked on by the boys, refusing to speak to the fathers, and shying away from the mothers. Some families believed it was them who weren’t a good pick while others lashed out and said it was her.[break][break]
She’s a monster.[break][break]
A freak.[break][break]
The admonishments weighed on her psyche and Claudia curled in on herself. Then, like a guiding light, a young woman appeared with a worn smile and offered to adopt her. [break][break]
”I’m nothing but trouble,” Claudia mutters, looking away from the outstretched hand.[break][break]
The woman laughed, the sound soft and hollow, making Claudia’s heart clench.[break][break]
”A bit of trouble is exactly what I need.”[break][break]

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The young woman, Alicia Knight, had lost her own child due to a miscarriage. Shortly after, she split with her husband of three years during several disagreements where the aforementioned child was thrown into her face. Claudia had been her pick from the moment she stepped into the play room and saw the little girl attempting to make a hasty retreat out of a window. The rest was history.[break][break]
Their relationship was off to a rocky start. Alicia, idealizing parenthood, hadn’t realized how troublesome Claudia could be. On the other hand, Claudia was reluctant to voice her desires and curled in on herself despite Alicia’s attempts to reach out. At a standstill, they weren’t sure where to go until Claudia asked Alicia for a book during their trip to the grocery store. It had crude drawings on the cover and wasn’t remarkable but Alicia bought it for her anyway, staying up late to read to Claudia until she fell asleep.[break][break]
”They’re myths,” Alicia points out, gesturing to the pictures of men in armor and wielding weapons against humongous beasts. ”And these are heroes.”[break][break]
Claudia wasn’t very interested in the heroes, instead pointing at the monster and looking up at Alicia curiously. ”What’re they?”[break][break]
"Monsters,” Alicia replies, nose wrinkling at the graphic depiction. ”Lets read more about Eurydice and Orpheus.”[break][break]
Claudia shakes her head. ”I wanna know about Medusa.”[break][break]

---

As time went on, Claudia grew. She hated revisiting her childhood and remembering how much of a brat she was. Alicia assures her that it wasn’t all bad. That Claudia was one of the most thoughtful children she’d ever known. How kind she was to animals, and attentive to people, always sure of what was right or wrong. But life wouldn’t be as simple as that and sometimes there were things Claudia would have to let go. Alicia hoped that the real world would be kind to her, something she voiced to Claudia as the girl readied to go off to college.[break][break]
But there were things Alicia didn’t know about Claudia. She didn’t know about the animals that talked to her, the creatures she could bend to her command with a word or the ones she could conjure up. Alicia didn’t know where her daughter went during the night. Climbing onto rooftops, basking in the wind rushing through her hair as she runs, feeling as free as a bird until she realizes that she’s off the ground and has to make an emergency landing in a tree frightened by the wings she thought she felt in place of her arms.[break][break]
Or the voice that calls out to her, the voice of a woman. The woman cries during commercials about hungry children over the world and bawls when a child’s death is announced. It urges Claudia to donate to different organizations that she didn’t even know existed and coaxes her to ensure that their claims are legit. It’s the voice that drives her to take the law enforcement exam after getting her bachelors in electrical engineering.[break][break]
Tells her that there’s more she can do on the right side of the law instead of behind a screen. Claudia wants to disagree but then she sees a report of a child left abandoned, and the words knot in her throat. [break][break]
”Who are you?” Claudia asks, running her thumb over the shiny new badge she’d been given upon her induction into the force at twenty-three. She sits alone in her apartment, the phone ringing is surely Alicia or someone else but she doesn’t pay it any mind, her hands clenching the sink as she wills herself to look in the mirror. A woman looks back at her, a reflection of herself but the pupils of her eyes are slits, Claudia leans closer to the mirror and the woman does as well.[break][break]
”Echidna.”

NOTES

+ Claudia has only recently spoken to Echidna. Their relationship is rocky but Echidna does have some influence over Claudia's actions and knows how to subdue her will. [break][break]
+ With a degree in electrical engineering, Claudia makes many of her own gadgets and necessary items during her escapades as Black Cat.[break][break]
+ Black Cat is a persona recently cropped up by Echidna to ensure that "justice" is being served. Claudia doesn't approve of it but she does have to admit that it can be effective.[break][break]
+ When she was young, her adoptive mother signed her up for martial arts classes and self-defense courses to help her get her confidence up and anger out. Claudia signed up for kick-boxing four years ago and enjoys letting her anger out on something physically.[break][break]
+ She's been in the force for a year and a few months. She enjoys it tremendously but there is also a bit of irritation when the bad guys get away.[break][break]
+ Unknown to most, even her adoptive mother, Claudia is infertile because of her connection to Echidna.[break][break]
+ Echidna searches for her mate, Typhon, hoping that he has found a vessel of his own and they'll be reunited.[break][break]
+ Because of their connection, Claudia is very in tune with nature and animals. She believes she can take on an animal's characteristics but it has a strange phantom effect on her body. She hasn't tried to turn into an actual animal.[break][break]
+ Echidna has a strong distaste for Corrupted individuals, believing that the vices that took hold of them are what emboldened the so-called "heroes" to take her children from her. Sees Magi as 'fake apostles' and the Nobelesse as 'righteous fools'.