"Arethusa was a nymph, possibly the daughter of an Arcadian river god, and a follower of the virgin goddess Artemis. One day as she was bathing, she discovered the river god Alpheus desired her, so she fled. She ran as far as the island of Syracuse, but he kept up. In desperation, Arethusa called on Artemis to defend her. Artemis did what she could. She transformed Arethusa into a spring, but according to Pausanias, the nymph didn't remain pure even in her transformed state. Alpheus had himself transformed into a river running under the spring so that the waters of river and spring might mingle."¹