Thunderbolt. Summary

Princess Helen of Sparta has been stolen from her bed and taken away to become the kidnapped bride of Theseus, king of Athens. She is disgusted by the man and his kingdom and tells him so. He slaps her twice as a result of her acerbic tongue, leaving a bruise. Theseus's mother, Lady Aithra, tries to help the 14-year-old princes to speak better of the king. Helen tells Aithra that the only reason her son kidnapped her is because she is beautiful and for that reason he won't hit her again. Aithra tells Helen to watch what she says. Helen decides she needs Aithra as an ally and pretends to be weak and tired. Helen is quite the feminist and feels that Aithra has nothing to do but talk about her son now that he is grown and her usefulness is over.

Helen...