Eternal Claim
BOOK 2: The New Odyssey
By Patrick O'Ceannliath
CHAPTER 1
WARNING: Sex scene in this Chapter
"Let me reward you, God of War." said Aphrodite teasingly.
The Goddess of Love placed her hands upon Kratos' chest as he sat upon the ship bunk, and began caressing him, while kissing him on the lips passionately. As they kissed, Kratos slipped her tunic off of her shoulders, exposing her bare breasts, and began to squeeze them gently. Aphrodite moaned in pleasure while she kissed him.
Moving her hands down lower, Aphrodite undid Kratos' tunic, letting it slide off of his waist, and began to stroke his massive, erect manhood with one of her hands, resulting in gruff moans of pleasure from Kratos. As she did this, Kratos began to kiss her neck, working his way down to her chest, sucking her perfect nipples as he squeezed them, stimulating the tips of them with his tongue. Aphrodite moaned loudly in pleasure, even moreso, when she felt one of Kratos' fingers slip into her moist vagina, her back arching as she felt his fingers move back and forth, stimulating her clit and G-spot, hitting every trigger of her divine womanhood.
She continued to stroke Kratos' penis vigorously, pressing her upper body against Kratos' as she did, the 2 divine beings caressing each others' genitals. Kissing down his chest, Aphrodite soon found herself just above Kratos' belt-line, and teased the God of War with her tongue, slowly moving it downward, around his manhood, then upward along his shaft, before taking him into her mouth. Her large lips hugged around Kratos' girth, and being she was divine, any gag reflex a mortal woman would normally have was non-existent, allowing her to take Kratos deep into her throat, as she undulated back and forth with her head. While in her mouth, Aphrodite occasionally utilized her tongue to provide extra massaging to Kratos' shaft. Kratos threw back his head in ecstasy and moaned in pleasure, grasping the back of Aphrodite's hair while she sucked him with gentle yet powerful force.
After a great deal of oral pleasure from the Goddess of Love, Kratos lifted up her head from his member, and looked into her eyes.
"And now I take you!" said Kratos forcefully.
"Spoken like a true god!" said Aphrodite.
Kratos picked Aphrodite up by her waist, and threw her onto her back, with force but not so much that it would hurt her. Kratos crawled atop Aphrodite, looking into her eyes, and drove his throbbing, stone-hard manhood into Aphrodite's vagina with a mighty thrust. Aphrodite moaned loudly in surprise and pleasure, always more than pleased with what Kratos had to offer her.
Grasping her shoulders, Kratos began to thrust his hips, slowly at first, letting her feel his every inch. Kratos growled in pleasure as he thrust, while Aphrodite let out moans of delight. Driven on by her moans of pleasure, Kratos increased his intensity of thrusting, moving his hands down to her waist. The harder and more intense he thrust, the louder Aphrodite moaned. For hours, Kratos was lost in the throes of their combined moans, and the sheer power of his thrusting. Aphrodite's moans were now turning to near-screams, and she placed her hands on Kratos' back, digging into him.
"Yes Lord Kratos! Only you!" said Aphrodite. "Yes, yes….YES, YES…..YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"
With a mighty roar, Kratos gave a tremendous thrust that could have split a mortal woman in half, and released his divine seed deep within Aphrodite. Kratos dismounted, and rolled onto the cot next to her, the Goddess of Love on her back, drenched in sweat and fanning herself.
"By Olympus!" said Aphrodite, catching her breath. "Only…you…could ever make me…climax….Kratos."
"And no one ever will." said Kratos, pleased with himself as he closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Kratos felt something prodding at his chest, and quickly stood awake, his blades in his hands, ready for battle. All he saw before him however, was Dionysus, shaking him awake. Seeing there were no threats to vanquish, Kratos put away his blades.
"What is the meaning of this intrusion?!" asked Kratos grouchily.
"My Lord, I'm sorry to interrupt your….activity." said Dionysus, noticing the naked, sleeping Aphrodite lying in bed next to him. "But Captain Acoetes has summoned us both; I think he has found your next place of battle."
"Very well then." said Kratos, standing up. "Lead the way."
Dionysus nodded, and walked towards the entrance to the cabin area, and up the stairs, with Kratos following him.
When they reached the surface, Kratos stood back for a moment, as the waves were rocking the boat back and forth violently, the wind was howling and the rain was pouring down. Nevertheless, they walked up to the helm, where Captain Acoetes was waiting for them.
"Fear not Lord Kratos." assured the Captain. "The Neaavgi cannot be sunken whatsoever, and can weather any storm, mortal or immortal."
Kratos grabbed Captain Acoetes by the collar.
"What makes you think I fear ANYTHING?!" growled Kratos.
"I beg your forgiveness, Lord Kratos." said Captain Acoetes. "What I meant to say was, 'worry not'."
Kratos released his grip from the Captain, and once he did, the Captain unveiled a spyglass, handing it to Kratos.
"Look there my Lord." said Captain Acoetes. "This will see right through any storm, any weather, and our destination is ahead."
Kratos grasped the spyglass, and looked into the lens. Ahead, he saw the coastline of an upcoming island. The coastline was green and rocky, with large cliffs, and various flowers covering the green surface. As they approached the land, the seas began to calm, and the boat stopped rocking.
"What is this land?" asked Kratos.
"I am not certain, my Lord." replied Captain Acoetes. "In fact, the closest translation I can decipher from some gibberish letterings….the locals seem to call it, simply 'Island' or 'Eesland'."
"Perhaps I can be of assistance, Lord Kratos." said a female voice behind the 3 men.
Dionysus, Kratos, and Captain Acoetes turned around, and a woman cloaked in a green, hooded robe walked before them. Unveiling her hood, a beautiful, young Greek woman's face could be seen.
"Ah, Ariadne my love." said Dionysus. "So good of you to join us. Kratos, surely you remember Ariadne."
"Of course." replied Kratos.
Ariadne kneeled before Kratos' feet.
"I, Ariadne, swear upon the River Styx, to serve you Kratos, God of War, faithfully and forever, just as all here have promised." said Ariadne, standing up. "Now that I've established that, let me help you my Lord."
Ariadne reached both her hands into the deep pockets of her robe, and came out with an object in each hand; one was a golden chalice, which she placed upon one of the ship's railings.
"This chalice can liquefy anything placed into it, and is safe for any to drink." explained Ariadne. "A gift from my dear husband. No matter what you put into it; hemlock berries, diamonds, anything, it will liquefy into a liquid safe for drinking."
Ariadne took the box in both hands, and opened it. Kratos looked at the contents inside the box, and looked half-confused, and half-disgusted.
"Why do you show me this?" asked Kratos.
The objects Kratos witnessed were 5 body parts; a human tongue, 2 human eyes, and 2 human ears.
"These are from my father, King Minos of Crete." said Ariadne. "He was a wicked king, but just as wise as he was wicked. He was boiled alive due to a trick from Daedalus and the daughters of King Colacus, and Daedalus brought me these back, as a gift, to use or give away as I may. Very few know, but my father was gifted by the gods as being able to understand any language put to his ears, read any lettering put to his eyes, and when he spoke, any would be able to understand him. As my first offer of service to you Kratos, I offer these gifts of my father."
Ariadne snatched the body parts from the box, and placed them in the chalice. Immediately, they dissolved and bubbled, until there were a purplish-pink liquid inside. Ariadne took the chalice in her hands, and offered it to Kratos.
"I know not where we are going, but I sense you will encounter many lands, many people, and many enemies." said Ariadne. "Drink, and be fortified with my father's abilities; except when those you do not understand purposely make a point of using certain words, you will need no translation, nor will you need a translator for you. All you need to do is drink, and you will be free of one less hindrance."
Taking the chalice in his hands, Kratos looked at it for a moment, then put it to his lips, and downed the liquid inside. Grimacing very slightly at the terrible taste, Kratos handed the chalice back to Ariadne.
"Captain Acoetes, how did you find the name of this place?" asked Kratos.
"On this scroll, my Lord, with these ridiculous scribbles." said the Captain, offering Kratos a small scroll.
Kratos opened the scroll, and looked at the inscriptions.
"The name of this place is called 'Iceland'." replied Kratos, taking the spyglass and peering into it towards the island.
They were closer now, and towards the left, Kratos saw what appeared to be a great, sinister-looking mountain, which emitted dark gray smoke from the top.
"Captain, instruct your crew to steer off the port bow." said Kratos. "I see where my next foe will be."
The Captain nodded, and ordered his crew to change their course slightly, adjusting the sails to pick up the best wind to get them towards their destination.
Having successfully changed course, the Neaavgi slowed down, and began to approach the shore of the island, the mast banking on the rocky sands. The towering mountain was clear to all now, and Kratos, seeing where he had to go next, exited the ship with a jump.
"We cannot accompany you I'm afraid, my Lord." said Dionysus. "The Laws of the House of War do not let any of us beyond the shores of your destinations."
"Then wait here, while I go and smite whatever dwells on this strange place." said Kratos.
Kratos left the shore, and began to walk inland. Along the way, he saw villagers and animals, but none of them seemed to notice him. He particularly noticed the sheep, and how they seemed to have longer, curlier wool than the sheep of Sparta.
At one point, a child was running along, and looked like they might run right into Kratos. Not having gotten out of the way in time, Kratos thought the child would surely run into him, but the child ran through him, as if the child was a ghost.
Puzzled, but no time to think about such a minor detail, Kratos pressed on, further inland, the ground becoming rockier and the soil becoming richer the closer he got to the mountain.
After what seemed like hours, Kratos finally reached the foot of the great mountain. Kratos put a foot upon the mountain to begin to climb, but all of the sudden, the top of the mountain sent a burst of dark-gray matter into the air, covering the sky. Nearby villagers ran away screaming, as the mountain burst yet again.
"Just like Vesuvius." said Kratos. "A volcano!"
Undeterred, Kratos attempted to make a few more steps, and that seemed to anger the volcano even more, resulting in further eruptions of ash into the sky.
"Show yourself!" bellowed Kratos from the bottom of the volcano. "If you be so powerful, let me see your true form!"
A low, throaty growl emitted from the top of the volcano, and in a mighty, large eruption, the sky and ground was almost completely black with ash, and Kratos couldn't see his hand in front of his face in the ashy fog. Coughing, Kratos waited for the ash to dissipate, and when it did, an enormous, towering figure stood in front of him.
This creature was unlike anything he'd ever seen before. It had the shape of a great, bearded human, only much more demon-like and terrifying; it was close to 2/3rds the size of the actual volcano, its skin was as black as the night, with glacial blue talons on its hands and feet, it wore a tunic of what appeared to be made of fur and icicles, it had 2 menacing red eyes, a large fanged mouth, and a beard which looked to be made of fire and embers. Surrounding it, was a contradiction of temperatures as well; in its hand and foot area, there appeared to be icy cold, and the rest of the creature seemed to emit volcanic heat.
"Foolish Odinson!" bellowed the creature in a deep, throaty voice, like the droning of monks from the underworld. "You shall perish here!"
"I am no 'Odinson' creature!" replied Kratos. "I am Kratos, God of War!"
"Another immortal foreigner has trespassed to Eyjafjallajökull?!" said the creature. "I am Surtr of the Flaming Sword! Jötun of War, noble member of the Frost Giant race! No one, mortal or immortal, encroaches upon Surtr's dominion! Prepare to die!"
Outstretching his massive hand, a large, flaming sword materialized within it, and he brought it crashing down in Kratos' direction, setting the ground ablaze upon impact. Kratos dodged the blade, but was not able to dodge part of his outfit catching fire. Rolling along the ground, he was able to extinguish the flames, and resumed the fight.
Having no success with a downward slash, Surtr brought his flaming sword in a sideways swipe to try and halve Kratos, but Kratos rolled forward, and slashed one of the blades at Surtr's feet.
Surprisingly, upon contact, the blade stuck to the giant's foot, and a stream of ice rode up the blade to Kratos' arm, freezing him in place. Astonished, Kratos wriggled to be free.
"Surtr wields both flames and ice!" laughed Surtr. "Born of frost, keeper of flame!"
Having switched to the Nemean Cestus, Kratos managed to break the ice, and free himself from the giant's icy trap. Thinking it might be a stupid risk, but worth a try, Kratos deployed the Nemean Cestus with great force into the giant's kneecap. This time, Kratos was not froze, and the Nemean Cestus delivered a painful enough blow to knock Surtr off balance with a growl of pain for the moment.
"It will take more than that to vanquish Surtr!" said Surtr.
With a mighty stomp, Surtr froze the ground underneath his feet, freezing Kratos' feet in place in the process. Kratos freed his feet with a couple punches of the Nemean Cestus, and managed to avoid another slash from Surtr's flaming sword, turning the ice around them into water upon impact, some of it steam.
Kratos found himself dodging more attacks than going on the offensive. This giant was of Titanic proportions, and he would need to gain some serious height before being able to get anywhere near the giant's head to try serious damage.
Surtr opened both his hands, and a storm of ash blew in Kratos' direction, making it impossible for him to see and difficult to breathe. Using the back of his hand, Surtr smacked Kratos, who could not see because of the ash cloud, only this time Kratos felt severe burning instead of cold, and Kratos was knocked backwards, blisters all over his upper body.
Rushing back towards the giant with the Boots of Hermes, Kratos purposely stopped near one of Surtr's feet, which reactively caused Surtr to stomp yet again, once again icing the ground underneath them. Jumping in time, Kratos managed to avoid his feet becoming frozen, and while in the air, slowly coming back down on the Wings of Icarus, Kratos charged the lightning bolts of Zeus, and unleashed the Might of Zeus on the ice below them.
The ice as a conductor, the massive surge of electricity pulsed throughout Surtr's body, causing him to bellow and seize in pain, and drop his flaming sword. The sword fell upon the ground, melting the ice yet again, only this time Kratos was ready.
The massive melting of the ice from the sword, especially since the flat part of the sword was directly on the ice, caused a large burst of steam from the evaporating water. Using this to his advantage, Kratos jumped and rode the steam vent, which led all the way up to Surtr's ugly face.
"Look upon this, for it will be the last thing you see!" said Kratos.
Conjuring his energy, Kratos summoned the Head of Euryale in his hand, and showed the Gorgon's face to the giant. Having never seen a creature like this, Surtr looked at Euryale, only to look directly into her eyes. A look of fear and panic upon his face, Surtr could feel his entire body harden, from the top of his scalp and spreading down his limbs, to his torso, and eventually his legs. Once he was fully turned to stone, Kratos used Atlas' Quake, and dove back down to earth, creating a powerful earthquake which knocked Surtr off his feet, and caused him to fall hard onto the ground, breaking into several massive pieces.
Seeing Surtr's head in one piece, Kratos rushed over to it, and using the Nemean Cestus, pounded Surtr's head into tiny pieces no more bigger than grains of sand. Euryale's stone effect wore off, and instead of pieces of a stone body all over the foot of the mountain, disembodied pieces of frost giant flesh appeared, with nothing more than a pile of pulp where the head used to be.
Within moments, Gatherer appeared, cleaning up the body, leaving only the giant sword behind. Kratos scoffed at the idea of the sword, being it was miles long, but suddenly, saw the sword shrink to his size. Kratos picked up the sword, and tossed it into the air, remitting it to his cosmic inventory.
Kratos was about to turn back and head towards the shore, when he heard the faint sound of a female voice, sounding as though it were calling for help.
Kratos went back to the foot of the mountain, where he first attempted to climb, and noticed a female form, wrapped in a blanket, which may have emitted from the mountain during one of the eruptions. Whoever she was, she was still alive, and Kratos sensed she was some type of immortal, and didn't sense any threat.
Picking her up, Kratos walked back towards the ship, and the Neaavgi was waiting for him. Climbing aboard, Kratos handed the woman to Dionysus.
"Give her ambrosia, heal her, and find out who she is." said Kratos.
Meanwhile, Captain Acoetes piloted the ship, as they sailed to the east, towards their next destination.