"Hector! Hector, please help me!" Paris yelled, his feet thumping loudly on
the hall floor as he ran to his brother's room. "Hector! Father's gone mad!
He's taken Charis to the dungeon!"
Hector's head popped out his door, and he caught his brother by the arms as he stumbled toward him, tears streaming down his unblemished face. "What is this? Why would Father send your wife to the dungeon?"
Paris shook his head, trying to organize his thoughts. "I don't know. I think he was upset that she used to be a servant."
Liberty's face appeared behind Hector. "Why would he do that? I thought King Priam was supposed to be a kind and understanding man."
Paris nodded, panting for breath. "He did use to be. I'm afraid his pride has gotten in the way as of late. He thinks you're trying to give Troy to the Greeks. He refuses to believe that you actually saved Hector's life in facing Achilles yourself. He thinks you made an agreement with him to hand Troy to the Greeks on a silver platter."
"Prince Hector, Prince Paris, I must speak with you," a general in the Trojan army approached, a serious look on his face. "We must attack the Greeks at dawn tomorrow and give them the final push to retreat, or kill all that remain."
Hector nodded. "Yes, let's take this to the armory. Battle should never be discussed in this environment." He looked at Liberty, his face solemn. "Stay here, Liberty. I will discuss the matter with Charis with my father as soon as I'm finished planning the battle. She will be out of the dungeon before nightfall. If you try to do anything to free her, it would make matters worse. Please, just stay here."
The three men left and Liberty retreated into the room, slumping onto the bed. "Stay here? How can I stay here when my friend is in jail and it's MY fault?" She yawned and closed her eyes, trying to form a plan to free Charis.
Before she knew what was happening, her hands were bound, her mouth gagged, and a blindfold blocked her vision. She tried to scream, but the gag was too efficient. She was helpless as two men dragged her through an unfathomable passage to the dungeon.
"Liberty!" Charis' voice echoed through the dungeon as she saw her friend dragged carelessly into an empty cell and dumped on the floor. The guards never bothered to remove her bonds, so Liberty was left helplessly slumped on the ground.
"Oh, gods, Liberty!" Charis whimpered, reaching through the bars for her friend. "What's happening to us? Where's Paris? Where's Hector?"
She stopped cold, hearing the High Priest's voice in the chamber. "The servant girl is to be let go tomorrow. The other is to be disposed of tonight. The Greeks have departed and left a gift to Poseidon on the shore. The battalion is bringing it to the city now. During the victory feast, take the blonde witch and dump her lifeless body into the Aegean. Prince Paris will be so happy to have his servant girl back, he won't question her disappearance. Also, Hector has just won a great victory, and his wife has returned. He won't notice her being gone either. If anyone questions her disappearance, no one is to reveal a thing. It must remain a mystery."
Liberty's body stiffened and Charis knew exactly what that meant. "The Horse... they're bringing the Horse to the city." She looked at her friend, helpless on the floor. "Why didn't Paris or Hector order it burned?"
"What the hell are you doing here?" Hector growled at Andromache. "You left me and my son and ran off with a man you've been sleeping with for three years, right under my nose. You whore. I do not want to see you. Neither does my son."
Andromache grabbed his arm and he looked at her hand like it was an insect. "Please, Hector. That was the biggest mistake of my life. I love you. Please..." her eyes filled up with tears as she pleaded with the prince.
He narrowed his eyes at her. "You've broken my heart. Fortunately, I've found someone else to repair it."
"That blonde girl? Liberty?" Andromache stared at him. "You cannot be serious. It was she who poisoned my mind in the first place. You believe that she really is from the future, right? If you believe that, you must believe she will have to go back eventually too. Zeus will never let her stay here."
Hector's heard thudded loudly in his chest. "She would not leave me."
"She would not have a choice," Hector's wife said in a low tone. "I am still your wife, Hector. Please. Give me a second chance. I will prove to you that I love you more than anything." She looked in the direction of the dungeon, fully aware of what was going on inside. "In fact, I believe that girl has plans to leave Troy tonight and go to Greece. She has told them our weaknesses."
Hector refused to look at his wife, instead focusing on the heavy doors to the city as they opened, revealing a giant wooden horse. He gasped in surprise and ran to the captain of the guards. "What is this? Who ordered that thing brought here? I ordered it burned!"
Paris trudged up alongside his brother, looking worn and miserable. "Father ordered it brought to the temple of Poseidon. I could not stop him."
Hector wrapped an arm protectively around his younger sibling's shoulders. "Tell me, Paris. Do you believe that Liberty is trying to save us, or trying to ensure the fall of Troy?"
Paris looked up at his noble brother, his red eyes gleaming with fresh tears. "I believe that this 'gift' will be our downfall if we let it," he said softly, gesturing to the giant structure as it rolled slowly past. "I have seen Andromache. Are you still in love with her?"
Hector rubbed his face warily. "I don't know. She is the mother of my son. She has only ever failed my trust the moment she left me."
Paris scoffed. "She failed your trust every night she betrayed you by bedding with that guard."
"I don't know what to do, Paris. Liberty is such a strange girl. She draws me to her with every flash of her eye or movement of her body. A wise man would know that something that is so magnetic is also only trouble."
"She risked her life for you!" Paris yelped, stunned. "She has told you everything before it happened."
Hector's eyes darkened. "She could also know this if she is in league with the Greeks."
"How could she predict that you would unknowingly kill Achilles' cousin if she was in league with the Greeks?" Paris clutched his brother's hand tightly. "Please, Hector. You have to help me save Charis, and I think Liberty is the only one who can help. In fact, if we don't destroy that horse, all of Troy will fall."
"How are you, my sons?" King Priam greeted, meeting the two princes by the wall. "What a victory present this is for us!" He spread his arms, encompassing all of the Horse as it was placed in front of the temple of Poseidon.
"I still say you need to burn it," Paris hissed, glaring at the elderly king.
"Now, my son, when will your heart forgive me for showing you that a prince does NOT marry a servant girl?" Priam grabbed Paris' face in his hands and kissed the young man's forehead. "Do not be troubled, my sons. This is a great day for Troy. This is the day that we showed Agamemnon that we will not fall if his entire empire came for battle."
The king looked at his eldest son. "I see that your wife has returned, apologetic as ever. Forgive her, for the sake of your son and our country."
Hector said nothing, but quickly turned and walked away. It had been a long day and his mind was not slowing down.
The sun was beginning to set and it seemed as if all of Troy had come out for the victory celebration. Everyone danced and sang around the giant horse. Paris grew even more upset with every passing hour. He had hoped that Hector would have retrieved Charis from the dungeons.
He looked around. Liberty had not made an appearance all day. Perhaps she had seen Hector reunite with his wife and had run away, or was hiding somewhere, heartbroken.
He went to go find her when he heard a frantic voice behind him. "Paris!"
He turned to see Charis running toward him at top speed. She leapt into his arms and planted small kisses all over his face. Paris was overjoyed to be reunited with his love. "Oh, Charis! My Princess! You're free! Did Hector talk them into letting you out?"
Charis opened her mouth to answer, but the King interrupted. "I have decided, my boy, that if you love her, then she truly is more than just a servant girl. You have seen the nobility inside her and you should be with her." He smiled at the couple and moved off to find Hector and Andromache.
"Paris!" Charis panted, clutching her husband's shoulders. "It's a trick. Your father set me free to distract you. He doesn't know that I know this, but I overheard the High Priest telling the dungeon guard to set me free and take Liberty out to the cliffs and kill her!"
Paris' heart stopped. "What?"
Charis nodded. "Yes, he found Andromache and brought her back, hoping that Hector would forget Liberty in his love for his family. He thinks Liberty is a witch and ordered her death during the victory celebration tonight. Paris, we've got to do something!"
Paris was torn. "What do I do, Charis? Hector is so ambivalent about his wife's return. He can't choose between her and Liberty. If I go to save Liberty, then who will rally the army and try to convince them that the Horse must be destroyed? If I stay here to protect the city, then the person who has saved us all will be killed!" He looked into his wife's frightened eyes. "I can't let you take on one of these tasks. You could not fight the guards to save Liberty and I doubt the army would believe you any more than they would believe me. They are so drunk with victory right now that they can't think of anything but women and wine."
Tears rolled silently down the Princess' pale cheeks. "What do we do?"
Paris clutched her small body to his own. "I don't know." He looked toward the top of the wall. "I need to go talk to Hector. "He grabbed Charis' hand and pulled her up the steps with him.
"Hector. My brother, we must talk." He approached Hector and Andromache cautiously.
Hector turned and looked at the young prince through narrow eyes. "What is it that cannot wait, Paris?"
Paris swallowed the lump in his throat and chose his words carefully. "Brother, I... Liberty. She's... They've taken her. Charis heard the High Priest talking of killing her tonight. Right now. You must go-"
"You must do nothing," Andromache interrupted, taking her husband's hand. "How do we know this elevated servant girl is not lying? Poisoning you both as the witch has done?"
"Don't call her that," Hector ordered.
"I'll call her for what she is," Andromache continued stubbornly. "She's polluted you. Both of these silly girls have." She glared at Charis. "They both should be killed."
Paris stepped in between his wife and Andromache. "You will watch your tongue."
Hector grabbed his brother roughly by the front of his clothes. "Don't speak to..." He dropped off, looking into the frightened eyes of his brother, then the defiant eyes of his cheating wife. He sighed, releasing Paris' robes. "Where are they taking Liberty?"
Charis began to explain that she would be murdered and then dropped off the cliffs to the west of the city, but Andromache stepped forward and slapped the girl hard across the face. "You whore! Stay out of this!" she spat.
Hector pushed her against the wall. "Do not touch her. We are over, you and I. You will NEVER set foot in the walls of Troy again. Be gone by the time I get back." He looked at Paris. "Watch her, and watch the wooden Horse. I will be back." He ran off down the corridor, leaving the young couple alone with Andromache and her rage.
Shouts echoed up from the dying celebration below. Paris looked toward the two women. "I... I'll be back." He went in the opposite direction as Hector had gone, toward the giant Horse.
Andromache sneered at the Princess. "So, you've managed to marry a Prince of Troy. How does it feel? If I can judge by his brother at all, Paris must keep you satisfied in bed. He did manage to seduce the Queen of Sparta after all."
"That is none of your business," Charis warned. "Leave this family alone. You've lost. You've lost your husband and your throne. Leave now while you still have your life."
"Is that a threat?" Andromache asked, plucking a torch from its holster in the wall.
"It's a promise," Charis answered evenly.
Andromache flew at the Princess, waving the torch wildly in front of her. They were both in a long corridor high above the celebration in the square below. Charis ducked and ran behind Andromache, trying to find something to use as a weapon.
Finding nothing, she ran further, until she was just above the Horse, and looked down for Paris.
Finding him nowhere in sight, Charis turned just as Andromache swiped at the air where her face had been with the torch. Charis swiped at her and three scratch marks appeared on Andromache's face, bleeding slightly.
"Bitch!" she hissed. "You will pay for that!" She moved to hit Charis with the torch, but Charis grabbed her arms and held her back. "Hector is mine. This Liberty will die, and you will soon follow," she rasped.
"You first," Charis said slowly, pushing Andromache with her foot.
The fallen royal stumbled blindly back, swinging the torch behind her. Before she could catch her footing, she plummeted out the window, falling headfirst into a fountain four stories below. The torch bounced off the stone wall and landed on top of the "gift" left behind by the Greeks, immediately setting the dry wood ablaze.
Paris appeared on the ground below just as ropes flew out the side and Greek soldiers started skittering wildly down the sides of the Horse. He cast a helpless look up at his wife.
"Shoot them as they come out!" she yelled down to him, and he immediately picked up the nearest bow, sending arrow after arrow into the falling Greeks. Dazed members of the army appeared soon after, helping Paris defeat the Greeks before they could reach the gates to let in the soldiers outside.
"Captain!" Priam called, hurrying through the square. "There are more troops outside the gates! Many more!"
The Captain of the guard ordered all men to the armory. "Paris," he said solemnly, placing a hand on the young prince's shoulder. "Thank you. We might have been lost without you." He looked up at the burning Horse. "Stay here and finish off any more Greeks that may try to escape."
Charis rushed into her husband's arms. "Paris! We're saved! The army is already fighting back the troops on the other side of the gate! We've won!" She looked behind them into the fountain. Its normally crystal clear water was stained red and the body of Andromache floated in the middle, facedown. "Oh!" She pinched her eyes shut and buried her face in Paris' chest. "She tried to kill me with the torch. I could do nothing. She tripped and fell out the window. I hope Hector will not blame me."
Paris brushed the ash out of her hair. "That torch saved Troy, Charis, my Princess. Hector cannot blame you for that." A burning body fell out of the Horse and he put an arrow through its chest, just to be safe.
"I wonder how Hector is faring with Liberty," Charis wondered. "I hope they are both well."
Paris shrugged helplessly. "I don't know, but I realize I must be out with the army. One of the princes must lead the men into battle and since Hector is not here..." He placed a gentle kiss on his wife's lips and ran to the gate.
Hector's head popped out his door, and he caught his brother by the arms as he stumbled toward him, tears streaming down his unblemished face. "What is this? Why would Father send your wife to the dungeon?"
Paris shook his head, trying to organize his thoughts. "I don't know. I think he was upset that she used to be a servant."
Liberty's face appeared behind Hector. "Why would he do that? I thought King Priam was supposed to be a kind and understanding man."
Paris nodded, panting for breath. "He did use to be. I'm afraid his pride has gotten in the way as of late. He thinks you're trying to give Troy to the Greeks. He refuses to believe that you actually saved Hector's life in facing Achilles yourself. He thinks you made an agreement with him to hand Troy to the Greeks on a silver platter."
"Prince Hector, Prince Paris, I must speak with you," a general in the Trojan army approached, a serious look on his face. "We must attack the Greeks at dawn tomorrow and give them the final push to retreat, or kill all that remain."
Hector nodded. "Yes, let's take this to the armory. Battle should never be discussed in this environment." He looked at Liberty, his face solemn. "Stay here, Liberty. I will discuss the matter with Charis with my father as soon as I'm finished planning the battle. She will be out of the dungeon before nightfall. If you try to do anything to free her, it would make matters worse. Please, just stay here."
The three men left and Liberty retreated into the room, slumping onto the bed. "Stay here? How can I stay here when my friend is in jail and it's MY fault?" She yawned and closed her eyes, trying to form a plan to free Charis.
Before she knew what was happening, her hands were bound, her mouth gagged, and a blindfold blocked her vision. She tried to scream, but the gag was too efficient. She was helpless as two men dragged her through an unfathomable passage to the dungeon.
"Liberty!" Charis' voice echoed through the dungeon as she saw her friend dragged carelessly into an empty cell and dumped on the floor. The guards never bothered to remove her bonds, so Liberty was left helplessly slumped on the ground.
"Oh, gods, Liberty!" Charis whimpered, reaching through the bars for her friend. "What's happening to us? Where's Paris? Where's Hector?"
She stopped cold, hearing the High Priest's voice in the chamber. "The servant girl is to be let go tomorrow. The other is to be disposed of tonight. The Greeks have departed and left a gift to Poseidon on the shore. The battalion is bringing it to the city now. During the victory feast, take the blonde witch and dump her lifeless body into the Aegean. Prince Paris will be so happy to have his servant girl back, he won't question her disappearance. Also, Hector has just won a great victory, and his wife has returned. He won't notice her being gone either. If anyone questions her disappearance, no one is to reveal a thing. It must remain a mystery."
Liberty's body stiffened and Charis knew exactly what that meant. "The Horse... they're bringing the Horse to the city." She looked at her friend, helpless on the floor. "Why didn't Paris or Hector order it burned?"
"What the hell are you doing here?" Hector growled at Andromache. "You left me and my son and ran off with a man you've been sleeping with for three years, right under my nose. You whore. I do not want to see you. Neither does my son."
Andromache grabbed his arm and he looked at her hand like it was an insect. "Please, Hector. That was the biggest mistake of my life. I love you. Please..." her eyes filled up with tears as she pleaded with the prince.
He narrowed his eyes at her. "You've broken my heart. Fortunately, I've found someone else to repair it."
"That blonde girl? Liberty?" Andromache stared at him. "You cannot be serious. It was she who poisoned my mind in the first place. You believe that she really is from the future, right? If you believe that, you must believe she will have to go back eventually too. Zeus will never let her stay here."
Hector's heard thudded loudly in his chest. "She would not leave me."
"She would not have a choice," Hector's wife said in a low tone. "I am still your wife, Hector. Please. Give me a second chance. I will prove to you that I love you more than anything." She looked in the direction of the dungeon, fully aware of what was going on inside. "In fact, I believe that girl has plans to leave Troy tonight and go to Greece. She has told them our weaknesses."
Hector refused to look at his wife, instead focusing on the heavy doors to the city as they opened, revealing a giant wooden horse. He gasped in surprise and ran to the captain of the guards. "What is this? Who ordered that thing brought here? I ordered it burned!"
Paris trudged up alongside his brother, looking worn and miserable. "Father ordered it brought to the temple of Poseidon. I could not stop him."
Hector wrapped an arm protectively around his younger sibling's shoulders. "Tell me, Paris. Do you believe that Liberty is trying to save us, or trying to ensure the fall of Troy?"
Paris looked up at his noble brother, his red eyes gleaming with fresh tears. "I believe that this 'gift' will be our downfall if we let it," he said softly, gesturing to the giant structure as it rolled slowly past. "I have seen Andromache. Are you still in love with her?"
Hector rubbed his face warily. "I don't know. She is the mother of my son. She has only ever failed my trust the moment she left me."
Paris scoffed. "She failed your trust every night she betrayed you by bedding with that guard."
"I don't know what to do, Paris. Liberty is such a strange girl. She draws me to her with every flash of her eye or movement of her body. A wise man would know that something that is so magnetic is also only trouble."
"She risked her life for you!" Paris yelped, stunned. "She has told you everything before it happened."
Hector's eyes darkened. "She could also know this if she is in league with the Greeks."
"How could she predict that you would unknowingly kill Achilles' cousin if she was in league with the Greeks?" Paris clutched his brother's hand tightly. "Please, Hector. You have to help me save Charis, and I think Liberty is the only one who can help. In fact, if we don't destroy that horse, all of Troy will fall."
"How are you, my sons?" King Priam greeted, meeting the two princes by the wall. "What a victory present this is for us!" He spread his arms, encompassing all of the Horse as it was placed in front of the temple of Poseidon.
"I still say you need to burn it," Paris hissed, glaring at the elderly king.
"Now, my son, when will your heart forgive me for showing you that a prince does NOT marry a servant girl?" Priam grabbed Paris' face in his hands and kissed the young man's forehead. "Do not be troubled, my sons. This is a great day for Troy. This is the day that we showed Agamemnon that we will not fall if his entire empire came for battle."
The king looked at his eldest son. "I see that your wife has returned, apologetic as ever. Forgive her, for the sake of your son and our country."
Hector said nothing, but quickly turned and walked away. It had been a long day and his mind was not slowing down.
The sun was beginning to set and it seemed as if all of Troy had come out for the victory celebration. Everyone danced and sang around the giant horse. Paris grew even more upset with every passing hour. He had hoped that Hector would have retrieved Charis from the dungeons.
He looked around. Liberty had not made an appearance all day. Perhaps she had seen Hector reunite with his wife and had run away, or was hiding somewhere, heartbroken.
He went to go find her when he heard a frantic voice behind him. "Paris!"
He turned to see Charis running toward him at top speed. She leapt into his arms and planted small kisses all over his face. Paris was overjoyed to be reunited with his love. "Oh, Charis! My Princess! You're free! Did Hector talk them into letting you out?"
Charis opened her mouth to answer, but the King interrupted. "I have decided, my boy, that if you love her, then she truly is more than just a servant girl. You have seen the nobility inside her and you should be with her." He smiled at the couple and moved off to find Hector and Andromache.
"Paris!" Charis panted, clutching her husband's shoulders. "It's a trick. Your father set me free to distract you. He doesn't know that I know this, but I overheard the High Priest telling the dungeon guard to set me free and take Liberty out to the cliffs and kill her!"
Paris' heart stopped. "What?"
Charis nodded. "Yes, he found Andromache and brought her back, hoping that Hector would forget Liberty in his love for his family. He thinks Liberty is a witch and ordered her death during the victory celebration tonight. Paris, we've got to do something!"
Paris was torn. "What do I do, Charis? Hector is so ambivalent about his wife's return. He can't choose between her and Liberty. If I go to save Liberty, then who will rally the army and try to convince them that the Horse must be destroyed? If I stay here to protect the city, then the person who has saved us all will be killed!" He looked into his wife's frightened eyes. "I can't let you take on one of these tasks. You could not fight the guards to save Liberty and I doubt the army would believe you any more than they would believe me. They are so drunk with victory right now that they can't think of anything but women and wine."
Tears rolled silently down the Princess' pale cheeks. "What do we do?"
Paris clutched her small body to his own. "I don't know." He looked toward the top of the wall. "I need to go talk to Hector. "He grabbed Charis' hand and pulled her up the steps with him.
"Hector. My brother, we must talk." He approached Hector and Andromache cautiously.
Hector turned and looked at the young prince through narrow eyes. "What is it that cannot wait, Paris?"
Paris swallowed the lump in his throat and chose his words carefully. "Brother, I... Liberty. She's... They've taken her. Charis heard the High Priest talking of killing her tonight. Right now. You must go-"
"You must do nothing," Andromache interrupted, taking her husband's hand. "How do we know this elevated servant girl is not lying? Poisoning you both as the witch has done?"
"Don't call her that," Hector ordered.
"I'll call her for what she is," Andromache continued stubbornly. "She's polluted you. Both of these silly girls have." She glared at Charis. "They both should be killed."
Paris stepped in between his wife and Andromache. "You will watch your tongue."
Hector grabbed his brother roughly by the front of his clothes. "Don't speak to..." He dropped off, looking into the frightened eyes of his brother, then the defiant eyes of his cheating wife. He sighed, releasing Paris' robes. "Where are they taking Liberty?"
Charis began to explain that she would be murdered and then dropped off the cliffs to the west of the city, but Andromache stepped forward and slapped the girl hard across the face. "You whore! Stay out of this!" she spat.
Hector pushed her against the wall. "Do not touch her. We are over, you and I. You will NEVER set foot in the walls of Troy again. Be gone by the time I get back." He looked at Paris. "Watch her, and watch the wooden Horse. I will be back." He ran off down the corridor, leaving the young couple alone with Andromache and her rage.
Shouts echoed up from the dying celebration below. Paris looked toward the two women. "I... I'll be back." He went in the opposite direction as Hector had gone, toward the giant Horse.
Andromache sneered at the Princess. "So, you've managed to marry a Prince of Troy. How does it feel? If I can judge by his brother at all, Paris must keep you satisfied in bed. He did manage to seduce the Queen of Sparta after all."
"That is none of your business," Charis warned. "Leave this family alone. You've lost. You've lost your husband and your throne. Leave now while you still have your life."
"Is that a threat?" Andromache asked, plucking a torch from its holster in the wall.
"It's a promise," Charis answered evenly.
Andromache flew at the Princess, waving the torch wildly in front of her. They were both in a long corridor high above the celebration in the square below. Charis ducked and ran behind Andromache, trying to find something to use as a weapon.
Finding nothing, she ran further, until she was just above the Horse, and looked down for Paris.
Finding him nowhere in sight, Charis turned just as Andromache swiped at the air where her face had been with the torch. Charis swiped at her and three scratch marks appeared on Andromache's face, bleeding slightly.
"Bitch!" she hissed. "You will pay for that!" She moved to hit Charis with the torch, but Charis grabbed her arms and held her back. "Hector is mine. This Liberty will die, and you will soon follow," she rasped.
"You first," Charis said slowly, pushing Andromache with her foot.
The fallen royal stumbled blindly back, swinging the torch behind her. Before she could catch her footing, she plummeted out the window, falling headfirst into a fountain four stories below. The torch bounced off the stone wall and landed on top of the "gift" left behind by the Greeks, immediately setting the dry wood ablaze.
Paris appeared on the ground below just as ropes flew out the side and Greek soldiers started skittering wildly down the sides of the Horse. He cast a helpless look up at his wife.
"Shoot them as they come out!" she yelled down to him, and he immediately picked up the nearest bow, sending arrow after arrow into the falling Greeks. Dazed members of the army appeared soon after, helping Paris defeat the Greeks before they could reach the gates to let in the soldiers outside.
"Captain!" Priam called, hurrying through the square. "There are more troops outside the gates! Many more!"
The Captain of the guard ordered all men to the armory. "Paris," he said solemnly, placing a hand on the young prince's shoulder. "Thank you. We might have been lost without you." He looked up at the burning Horse. "Stay here and finish off any more Greeks that may try to escape."
Charis rushed into her husband's arms. "Paris! We're saved! The army is already fighting back the troops on the other side of the gate! We've won!" She looked behind them into the fountain. Its normally crystal clear water was stained red and the body of Andromache floated in the middle, facedown. "Oh!" She pinched her eyes shut and buried her face in Paris' chest. "She tried to kill me with the torch. I could do nothing. She tripped and fell out the window. I hope Hector will not blame me."
Paris brushed the ash out of her hair. "That torch saved Troy, Charis, my Princess. Hector cannot blame you for that." A burning body fell out of the Horse and he put an arrow through its chest, just to be safe.
"I wonder how Hector is faring with Liberty," Charis wondered. "I hope they are both well."
Paris shrugged helplessly. "I don't know, but I realize I must be out with the army. One of the princes must lead the men into battle and since Hector is not here..." He placed a gentle kiss on his wife's lips and ran to the gate.