Lost Love
Author's note: This story is a belated tribute to September's Child on her birthday. Tanti auguri, carissima! Moreover, your "De niña a mujer" inspired me, too. This one is not related to my previous stories on Pandora and Rhadamanthys but focused in the events of The Lost Canvas. All in all, I will want to thank the support, kindness and inspiration of many people, especially my friends and authors Mel and Raix.
For writing this story, I was inspired by "Amore Perduto", a song featured in 1998 by the gifted tenor José Carreras of Barcelona, after Giazotto's arrangement of Albinoni's breathtaking Adagio in G minor. I highly recommend you to listen to it while reading this story.
Lost Love
It was sunny and scented spring afternoon in the heart of Germany. The emerald green meadows surrounding a small village were bright and the colors of the houses were welcoming, too. At the main square, some rascals ran and screamed in delight as their mothers chit-chatted under the sun rays. Some bushes full of wild berries were at the side of a dusty little path coming down the mountains.
Up on the mountains, the trees were tall and the leaves formed a brushy canopy on a girl dressed in tattered black robes. Her face, long black hair, arms, legs and breasts were covered with a thick layer of blood and dirt. Some of her wounds were still bleeding and they stained her clothes with different shades of deep red. Suddenly, she sighed and tried to stand up but her head was spinning wildly. So she rested her head on the green grass for a couple of minutes until she tried again. With some effort, she rose into seated position and looked around. As she was used to all what surrounded her was black, white or grey as it was covered by ashes. A greyscale world was ahead of her, indeed.
All of a sudden, slivers of memories came to her, flooding her brain with daunting images of sadness, horror and death. Shutting her eyes, she tried to get rid of them but they continued to flow into her like a powerful torrent of muddy water. In fact, they kept on coming while her eyes were flooded with bitter tears, too.
Il fiume dei ricordi
Il greto del passato
Sta ritornando da me
All at one, she remembered what happened before she arrived to this place. There was a tall burly young man on his early twenties with disheveled blond hair nested in her arms. Although she might call it a young man, it was a horribly mutilated body which was bleeding in her arms, indeed. A cold hotchpotch of flesh, bones and blood was what she held in her arms. In spite of the bleeding, she tried to hug him closer as if her embrace would have been powerful enough to heal those deep wounds and to restore the wrecked limbs. She shamelessly cried again as she tried to hug herself against those horrible memories.
Again, she wanted to scream.- Rhadamanthys, you're a fool! Why did you sacrifice your life for?
Shuddering, she recalled that moment with a broken heart. Notwithstanding, the presence of that hideous Alone, Pandora pressed Rhadamanthys to her bosom more than ever. She didn't care of the impostor's abusive language or how much he had disappointed her. Her only concern was the blond man in her arms. But his body was cold like a corpse. Silently, more tears ran down her cheeks and covered his pale face, too. Now, she was able to talk to him as an equal, her heart open without second thoughts. No more hierarchy or duty between them. All in all, they were just two persons serving under Hades, a woman and a man who were loyal to their god. A pair who were decided to fight until the end to win the Holy War for their beloved Lord Hades who was their reason to be here now.
In spite of being under the Spring sun, she had a cold feeling. The birds sang on the trees above her. Blinking, she remembered when she was a small girl and played hide-and-seek with Partita around the Heinstein Castle's gardens. Watching the branches of the trees, she was able to see the birds were singing happy tunes and nature awakening after a long winter. But she had been used to the coldness of the winter that was installed in her heart since death ruled her life.
But there were occasions when the coldness of her heart was melted by his gestures. Since the first time he knelt in front of her throne, a shiver of excitement was triggered in her. Whenever he took her hand with his gloved hand to reverently put a chaste kiss on it, she had to hide the thrill that was her natural response to this gesture. When she was a teenager, it was more difficult to hide her excitement when his lips brushed her hand or his blond head bowed to caress her fingers.
Risento i baci su di me
I abbraci tuoi
Gli mi bruciano ancor
There were endless nights when Pandora dreamed of him, of the mighty fine young man he had become. Although it was forbidden to love someone else than Hades, her heart wanted Rhadamanthys. So she had to make bigger efforts to hide her feelings to the mighty Judge of the Underworld and the other Specters. Besides, his correctness and good manners towards her only added fuel to her passion. However, the Wyvern's behaviour was impeccable and she didn't complain. But behind her cold and aloof demeanour, every single gesture of him poured more wood to her hidden bonfire. One of her happiest memory was to wake up in his arms after the disastrous mission in Atlantis. Although she was upset to lose the oricalchum, finding herself in his strong arms was a dream came true.
If they had been granted a chance to live as humans, she might have asked her father to get acquainted with Lord Walden and suggest him to make a formal request for Pandora's hand in marriage, her betrothal to his young heir Rhadamanthys ...
But her dreams were shattered as the tower clock bells tolled in the distance. The small village was getting ready to the sunset. Pandora bitterly cried again. Now, she was alive and alone, forced to live like a human among the villagers. It was his last wish, to save her from Alone. Rhadamanthys asked her to live to lead Hades' troops and to live on his behalf, too.
Something was broken as her heart exploded.- Amore perduto! I'm damned without you, Rhadamanthys! My lost love!
Pandora was unable to deny it now: she had lost the only man that meant everything to her. Her world was colourless forever. Now she felt empty and utterly sad. Nothing would make sense in the future. Her life was buried in the Underworld with him, cancelled all happiness in this grey and hostile earth.
Sta rivivendo per te
Ma dove ti troveró
Nevertheless, it was time to go ahead. She made a promise to her lost love: her task would be to work for Lord Hades and to guarantee his success in the future Holy War. She was ready to do everything not to disappoint Rhadamanthys trust. Until it was time to meet again in another life.