He had lived for eons on end. Eons…-infinite minutes and hours, horrifically long days and nights, boringly slow passing years, and still, one century after the other had somehow mechanically flown away without him daring to at least hope at ever meeting a woman like her.
…Thus, one shouldn't be astounded by the fact that, when the historical event finally happened, his obtuse brain obstinately refused to believe it was actually true while his ice cold heart rejected any emotional involvement in their relationship with a ferocity to match the one of Cerberus during a copious feast….It took like forever for the walls surrounding his divine soul to crumble...but they did eventually...they all did , one by one until there was no obstacle left standing.
….She was absolutely perfect…perfect in every imaginable way: she had grace, sensuality, strength, intelligence, a killer body and an even more murderous mind, a flawless intuition, a sky high capacity to get out of messy situations, will and guts, but most of all she had that inextinguishable fire and lust for violence, War and conquest that no mortal had ever possessed before her.
She was made to rule, to make every breathing and living thing tremble at the sound of her name, she was made to be his…..As for him….he was made to own her - in every sense of the word- to teach her, to command her, to mold her, to worship her , to love her and to make her love and hate him with the same maddening intensity as he in his turn, loved and hated her.
….They were meant to be together...Their story had been written down from the beginning of time….The Fates themselves had foretold their unbreakable union long before he himself had seen the light of day, and though the word "sweet" was supposed to be as unfitting for his crappy character as the deep meaning of "mercy" was to Celesta, it kinda described what he felt for her more accurately than anything else.
Breaking each one of those initially "unbending" rules, he allowed his unmatchable ego to secretly melt away enormous quantities of it's divine essence into that dangerously enthralling poison streaming like lava from the very core of her sugary but lethal presence; his life only made sense when it was unfolding on the background music produced by the dynamic drumming of her restless heart….Taming her, forcing her hand to give in while being forever aware of the utter impossibility of such error ever occurring, had become a purpose much more significant than any other he had dreamed of having…Plus, given that the ridiculously out of fashion idea of ruling the world in his Father's place or the bloody one of savagely slaughtering half of mankind just for fun were no longer on his top priorities list, he needed a new toy to take the boredom away.
Cleverly guessing what he was basically longing for, the Warrior Princess had gradually managed to transform herself into the center of his gravity…..In his eyes, all Universe revolved around her…..His own , personal Sun….his creation, his pride and joy….
…..Thus, to think that he was now barely controlling himself from ripping her to pieces was inconceivable …even for him….
XXX
The sudden, unexpected blue vortex that had hungrily swallowed the Warrior Princess just seconds before the overly talkative Bard managed to launch yet another dumb question about the intriguing origin of the golden apples, received an absolutely revolving connotation in the eyes of the raven Chosen of War who angrily opened them as wide as two Roman coliseums, the very instant the dizziness caused by that unnatural means of traveling was gone…..
It took less than two blinks for her sharp mind to realize where she had been brought and who exactly was the person eager enough to die as to dare do that. Soon, even the last of her suspicions were confirmed: the reckless author of that foolishly challenging action was none other than her patron God and the elegant location he had ceremoniously chosen for the meeting was indeed the Great Hall of Olympus…
Any keen observer could have noticed that she was not taken aback by the apparently spontaneuous event….She was a smart girl after all….Most likely, she must have easily predicted that a "part two" of their abruptly interrupted romantic moment was in order….And still, it only took one casual glance for her to realize that bubbly love and sweet talk were the last thing the grim looking Olympian had in mind …
...Now that was truly a weird enough detail to make one wish to know more, considering his contagious excitement from just a couple of hours before…
Consequently, she was more than intrigued, she was eager to find out what could have caused that unnaturally swift mood swing, but at the same time, his sick nerve to just pop her there without her consent, was beyond irritating…It was rather scandalous considering their incredibly tangled history….
Taking a long, greedy sip from the artistically shaped goblet of ambrosia he was holding, Ares smiled courteously at her while with a brief, almost disinterested once over, he found out everything that he needed to know. Her intimidating body posture spoke highly of a woman completely in control of her emotions and reactions -just like she had always been- but her every cell was trembling in the anticipation of what she could only hope was about to follow-fighting him was definitely not on her list, he could tell that much- Thus, that slashing gaze darting from her toxically azure irides – a gaze that would have been unmistakably envied by even the most famous Athenian actor-made no impression on him ….He could instantly tell apart a clay mask from the real deal...
Little did she know that in but a matter of minutes, what started as a harmless interpretation of a faithfully executed routine-in which both of them were bound to play their parts to perfection- would quickly degenerate into something as filthy as mud and as puddle as rainwater…Something extremely real, something that was clearly about to let her agape given that strangely displayed defiance and wrath mirrored on the surface of his steely eyes, a detail that Xena curiously left aside for some odd, hard to understand reason….
Maybe it was that usual detachment of his -that she was so accustomed hating- that threw her flawless attention off balance...I mean that common sight of him trying to make himself even more comfortable than he already was on his late Father's marble throne, casually sprawling one leg over the armrest in a pose meant to illustrate nothing else than ultimate relaxation, didn't offer at first any clues related to the inner turmoil grinding his brain like a corn mil...She just erronately interpreted it as one of those unbelievably irritating gestures he loved doing just for the fun of making her snap. She couldn't have possibly suspected that there was considerably more emotion hiding behind his own mask, and that for once that desperate attempt to relax was actually meant to bring him at least an ounce of true calmness, a state of mind that he was silently begging for that very then...
When she finally spoke, her line seemed to respect the common pattern imposed by their forever "tensed" relationship. She was obviously compelled to make an allusion to his unorthodox methods of bringing her there.
"Now I'm really starting to regret having declined your offer…I would have turned you to ashes within a blink…." she barked at him on such a convincing tonality that in any other circumstances he would have wondered twice whether the content of his answer was suitable or not.
"Is that so? Well then…. I suppose that you'll find the opportunity that I'm about to present you quite pleasing….." the God retorted while making a pretty golden apple appear in his hand and casually throwing it to her. "As I said…take a bite….it's juicy….you'd love it….And, as a bonus you'll get the chance to cremate me…"
Needless to say, Xena was in shock. The invisible mask fell instantly on the floor, shattering into little pieces...His mask soon followed.
When she replied, her voice was strangled with anger and surprise….real anger this time….All falsity had been thrown out the window at the awareness of his heinous, double crossing intent.
"How did you get this?!" the question literally burst out of her chest along with a loud sneer.
"You gotta be kidding me! You left them to Odin for safe keeping! Odin! I mean come on, the guy 's literally incapable of guarding his own sword! Like it or not Darling, you have to admit it, that was the worse idea you'd ever had….It certainly rivals the one with me posing as a farmer…." his answer was launched on an audibly more sarcastic note than he had first intended, and he would have certainly felt a bit regretful at the thought of having stung her ego a bit too hard if it hadn't been for that decimating fury burning inside him at the mere sight of her.
"You stole the apples from Odin?!"
She sounded reaalllyyy pissed…a detail that failed heroically to cause him any unnecessary worries.
"Stealing is such a negative and incriminating word... Why don't we go for borrowed instead? 'Sounds less harsh than the first?"
"Why don't I shove this up your ass instead?!" she snapped drawing her sword, and given the tension building inside her muscles it was more than obvious that a full scale attack had strangely become unavoidable.
Completely unlike him, Ares didn't even blink at the sound of her bold, challenging phrase. The trace of his ironic smile vanished though before she could utter one more syllable, and his face hardened visibly as soon as his hands clenched around the armrests, in such a vicious grip that the Warrior Princess could have sworn that it was but a matter of seconds until they would crack under the effect of that superhuman strength….
Simultaneously, his eyes changed their soft mahogany nuance into a frighteningly menacing pitch black that she had seen before on several different occasions…..She unconsciously arched an eyebrow….She was well aware of what that particular glare meant for each and every living and breathing thing located in the immediate radius of the fuming God….
"Sadly you'll have to settle with using it to slice that fruit, unless you want me to personally come and shove it down your throat, that is…" he stressed, winking at her, and it was crystal clear that he was not joking…
"Has that ambrosia affected your brain or something?" she hissed through gritted teeth, refusing to obey his absolutely ridiculous demand. the expression of a raging lioness ready to tear him to pieces.
The moment the sound of marble cracking and falling on the floor could be heard though, Xena's flawless self defense mechanism urged her to take one step back….Unfortunately for her, that praisable instinct was instantly choked by her sky high pride….Standing her ground just like he had taught her too a long time back was the only reaction that she could afford, despite being well aware of just how wrong it felt.…
For what seemed to last an eternity in mortal time, Ares closed his eyes, forcefully scotching his boiling anger and successfully annihilating the impulse of rising from that throne and beating the crap out of her.
When he did reply though, despite his best efforts, from his every word, dark fury was reverberating like the mortuary sonority of a raging flood sweeping away houses…
"Just out of curiosity,did you actually believe that once I got my powers back, I would be that busy as to not take interest any more in what you were up to?"
She flinched…he couldn't possibly know….She hadn't told anyone about it, not even Gabrielle….
She decided that feigning ignorance was the best policy given the circumstances…Again, not one of her best ideas….
"What do you mean?"
"What do I mean? " ….the God echoed on the gravest of tones, rising from the throne and slowly descending the three stairs separating them with such shattering confidence and determination that the Warrior Princess couldn't help wishing she had gone with the second option.
From the outside, he appeared to be still in control -almost bewitched by the surreal beauty of her statuesque visage- a reality confirmed the moment his fingers began running up and down the her long, dark tresses, caressing their silky surface with a hard to imagine gentleness. For Xena though, his gesture roughly translated in an explicit enough threat to make her skin crawl, a willingly indirect gesture that had nothing to do with neither affection nor weakness.
Nonetheless, she didn't stir….. her lips were the only ones that parted slightly at the teasingly seductive effect of his touch…
"Does Japa ring any bells?"
She hesitated for a moment wondering if continuing to deny it and simply lie to his face was of any help…..In spite of the alarming messages sent by her impeccable sixth sense she somehow reached the dramatic conclusion that it wouldn't hurt to try….if there was even the slightest chance for him to back away, it was worth the effort…
"Should it?" she firmly retorted, piercing him with her gaze.
….As I said before…..not one of the brightest ideas she had ever had, for the instant the throaty phrase left her mouth, the God gave his fingers a totally different usage, and before she knew it, her cheeks were being tightly and very uncomfortably pressed together with the crushing force of a grip vice that made her let out a savage moan. She could literally feel her jaw crushing under the effect…
At the same time, his free hand kept stroking her hair rhythmically….Again, to Xena it felt anything but a loving caress…Her experience with him was way to vast so that all that faked tenderness could be mistaken for something else. Plus, she couldn't possibly let herself forget that in but a matter of seconds, everything could have easily turn into a dreadfully painful experience. Deluding herself would have brought nothing good...
To all appearances, the danger was imminent, his demand mindblowingly absurd, and the options to avoid it rather limited. Still, according to the rigorous code that needed to be respected by any decent Warrior, she knew she had to act somehow, to try to find a way out of that unprecedented mess no matter the consequences.
Violence was of course the dumbest alternative imaginable, but it wasn't like she could afford the luxury to choose, and thus, directing a painful elbow blow right beneath the God' left rib was like the first effective move that came to her mind, a blow that despite it's crushing intensity didn't manage to make it's victim to at least change his facial expression.
"Try that again, and I swear it on Styx, I'm gonna break your little neck…" he murmured against her ear, kissing softly her temple in the process.
His voice though was trembling with rage….
"Now …here's how I see things: you're gonna eat that damn apple, become immortal and then you can go back to the trashy Blonde, just like that….Refuse to do it, and by the time you get down from Olympus, you'll find her hacked to pieces, her head hanging up on a spike, decorating the Acropolis, and you do know me well enough to tell that I'm not joking...So…..what should it be, Honey? "
Another elbow kick, considerably more powerful and damaging this time made the God's face twist in fury, and his fingers snake brutally around her neck .
Her recklessness was obviously not going to remain unpunished….Strangling her to death could provide a certain amount of fun after all….
She tried not to fight it at first, hoping that her passiveness would make him loose his appetite, but she was soon to discover that the War God was anything but fond of the concept of giving up fulfilling an interesting objective.
And so, about two minutes later, the instinctive battle for life began, just like Ares knew it would, a battle that she was bound to loose…Nonetheless, as the last ounce of life she still had sparkling inside her seemed to leave her, her still trashing body gradually loosing it's force along with her visage's natural color, right before she slipped out of consciousness, Ares loosened his grip, allowing her to breathe , but without actually removing his hands from around her neck , keeping them there like a collar, a collar that cruelly reminded her of who was the master and who was the slave…..That was a detail that tended to slip her memory quite often…
"See Princess? If you really have a death wish, you just need to tell me…no reason to take that tiring trip all the way to Japa just to get yourself killed! Now... I strongly suggest you make that choice or I'll have to choose for ya', and by Tartarus, trust me, it would be in the Sidekick's benefit if you are the one who takes the pick."
