"I know it's around here somewhere," Liberty said, looking over the terrain
from atop the horse Priam had given her. Her eyes caught something glinting
in the distance and she urged the animal toward it. "Oh! There it is!" She
galloped off at top speed.
Hector chased after her and the two quickly turned the adventure into a race.
"Eat my dust, Prince!" Liberty shouted, digging her heels into the horse's sides.
Hector laughed and decided to let her win, but not by much.
The black truck was covered in a layer of dirt and grime, but otherwise looked undamaged. Liberty slid off her mount and ran up to it, hopping up and over the door and inside. "I know it doesn't have any gas, but maybe the radio still works," she said, turning the key to the on position. A loud beep confirmed her hope and she smiled up at Hector, who was inspecting the vehicle thoroughly.
The radio buzzed to life. "... I can tell you're going through the motions, I figured you were acting out your part. Once again, we're playing off emotion. Which one of us will burn until the end?"
Liberty grinned and sang along. "Catalyst, you insist to pull me down. You contradict the fact that you still want me around. And it's all downhill from here... and it's all downhill from here."
She sighed and dusted off the dashboard of her beloved truck.
"What exactly is this thing?" Hector asked, startling himself when he pulled on the door handle and clicked open.
Liberty patted the passenger seat and he obediently sat down. "It's my truck... or at least it was. It runs on fuel, turning the wheels and making it move." She cast a sideways look at him. "Really fast."
"How fast?" He opened the glove compartment and rummaged through the papers inside.
Liberty grinned. "Faster than the fastest horse."
"I'd like to see that. If only you weren't out of fuel." Hector reached to play with the radio dials, but his eyes caught something. He scrambled out of the truck and fell to one knee, bowing low.
Liberty looked at him quizzically before turning her head to see Apollo standing there, smiling.
"Not you again," she grumbled, receiving a startled look from the prince.
"Hello, Miss Liberty," he said, practically oozing with ego. He nodded toward Hector. "Greetings, Prince Hector of Troy."
Hector's head bowed low again. "Apollo."
Liberty glared at the god. "What do you want this time? Me to save King Richard at the Crusades?"
Apollo leaned against the side of the vehicle and folded his arms across his chest. "Well, dearest descendant of Zeus, your task is complete. You've saved Troy. You will be going home now."
Hector gasped and Liberty swallowed hard. "Home? To the United States, home? To the year 2004, home?"
Apollo nodded, raking a hand through his hair. "Yes, child."
Hector ignored his inclination to remain silent and addressed the god of the Sun. "Please, Lord Apollo. Do not take her from me." He rose to his feet and walked around the car, standing in front of Apollo, next to the driver's side door. "She means everything to me. Do not send her away."
Apollo looked bored. "It is not my decision, Prince. Zeus is the one who is sending her back to her time."
"How can we prevent this?" Liberty pleaded. "I want to stay here!"
Apollo shrugged. "Don't ask me." He then vanished from sight.
Liberty leapt out of her truck and threw herself into Hector's arms. "I don't want to go! I want to stay with you!" she sobbed into his chest.
Charis sighed heavily as her leather sandals clicked against the polished marble floor of the great hall of the palace. It had been a day since Apollo came to Liberty and Hector, and there was a sad air through out the entire city. Hector and Liberty did not go to supper yesterday and today. Charis couldn't blame them. Paris didn't accompany her to supper tonight and hardly ate anything yesterday.
"What are we to do?" She thought out loud, as she stopped in the middle of the hallway. "We cannot defy a god...let alone Zeus himself..." She sighed as she balanced the tray of food in one hand, pulling close the robe of Paris' that she had borrowed with her free hand, trying to get some kind of warmth and comfort from it before continuing on her way back to her chambers.
As she walked past the door to Hector and Liberty's chamber she heard soft sobbing and Charis blinked away her own tears. She hated feeling this helpless and unable to ease the pain of her friend and brother-in-law. She carefully opened the door to her room and saw her husband as he stood next to the window looking out into space.
"Darling, I've brought some food...please at least eat a little bit..." She said in a gentle tone and Paris just nodded. "I'm going to go to the temple of Apollo and pray, perhaps that might do some good." Paris just nodded again and Charis went on her way.
"Curse you sand. Curse you sandals." Charis muttered under her breath as she stood on the steps of the shrine to Apollo. She shook the sand out of her sandals. After she was finished, Charis slipped her sandals back on her feet and made her way into the shrine. She stood in awe of how quickly they had rebuilt the shrine after the invasion by the Greeks. She headed inside to the altar, lit some incense placed it before a small statue of the god and dropped to her knees and began to pray.
"Please Apollo...I beg thee, not to take Liberty from us."
Liberty was slumped across the bed, her delicate fingers tracing lazy circles in the mattress. Hector paced the room in front of her, mumbling to himself and twisting his dark hair around his index finger. He stopped suddenly and she looked over at him, a hopeful look on her pale face.
Hector stared at her for a long moment before resuming his pacing, and she dropped her face into the bed.
"Maybe," she said softly, turning her head to the side. "Maybe it's good I go back."
Hector's head snapped in the direction of his love. "How can you say that? You mean so much to me... to Troy."
Liberty rolled onto her back and extended her hand, beckoning him to her. The prince moved to her side and sat on the bed near her, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips for a quick kiss.
"Well, this isn't my time. I also kind of miss my parents... and my dog." Liberty crawled to the side of the bed and slid her bag out from under it. She unsnapped it and pulled out her wallet, flipping it open. Hector looked inside at the pictures. "This is him. His name is Kody." She pulled out a picture of a Golden Retriever puppy and handed it to him. "I really miss him."
"And your friends too, right?" Hector smiled at the picture and handed it back to her.
Liberty bit her lip. "Some of them, yes, but I barely talked to any of them anymore. The ones I really cared about didn't live near me. I made them at college, across the country, and when I moved back home we lost contact. I miss my parents and my doggie most of all. I wish I could go back long enough to say goodbye and tell them not to worry, but I'd rather stay with you." She brought Hector's hand to her face and nuzzled it lovingly. "You, Paris, Charis, and Astyanax are the people I care about most." Both she and the prince looked into the cradle at the foot of the bed at Hector's sleeping son.
Hector slid to his feet and retrieved the infant, cradling him against his chest. The boy blinked up at his father with bright eyes, yawned, and gurgled happily.
Hector smiled and placed him in Liberty's waiting arms. She kissed his forehead and pressed her cheek to his head. "I barely know you, baby, but I love you anyway." She looked up at Hector and smiled sadly. "He alone makes the prospect of never going back to the future worth it. I want to see him grow tall. I want to see all the Trojan women throwing themselves at him." She blinked back tears. "You know, in the history I knew, the Greeks threw him off the wall after capturing the city."
Hector's heart almost stopped. He scooped his son back into his arms and cuddled him protectively. The boy, sensing his father's apprehension, whimpered softly.
Liberty looked out the window at the darkening clouds. "We can't really do anything about it anyway, can we?" She bit her lip as a servant came in to retrieve Hector's son for his bath and meal. "I mean, I could be gone in a flash whenever Zeus wanted, couldn't I? We have no choice in the matter. When the gods want me gone, I'm gone." She sighed heavily. "It's not an encouraging thought, I know, but it's the awful truth."
She leaned over and dug into her bag again, retrieving a metal bracelet from a side pocket. She slid off the bed and went to Hector, placing it in his hand. "Look, this link has a heart on it, and this one says love. If they take me, remember me by this bracelet. Remember that I love you more than the earth, the heavens, and everything in between."
Hector studied the bracelet as he slid it over his wrist, it was a little tight, but he didn't seem to care. He snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her to him, kissing the top of her head. "Well, I will not give you up without a fight. If Zeus wants to take you away from me, he better prepare for my wrath. I'll take on all of Olympus if I have to."
Liberty smiled and tapped his nose lightly with her finger. "That's worse than facing Achilles."
Hector smiled back. "And I beat Achilles... thanks to you."
Hector chased after her and the two quickly turned the adventure into a race.
"Eat my dust, Prince!" Liberty shouted, digging her heels into the horse's sides.
Hector laughed and decided to let her win, but not by much.
The black truck was covered in a layer of dirt and grime, but otherwise looked undamaged. Liberty slid off her mount and ran up to it, hopping up and over the door and inside. "I know it doesn't have any gas, but maybe the radio still works," she said, turning the key to the on position. A loud beep confirmed her hope and she smiled up at Hector, who was inspecting the vehicle thoroughly.
The radio buzzed to life. "... I can tell you're going through the motions, I figured you were acting out your part. Once again, we're playing off emotion. Which one of us will burn until the end?"
Liberty grinned and sang along. "Catalyst, you insist to pull me down. You contradict the fact that you still want me around. And it's all downhill from here... and it's all downhill from here."
She sighed and dusted off the dashboard of her beloved truck.
"What exactly is this thing?" Hector asked, startling himself when he pulled on the door handle and clicked open.
Liberty patted the passenger seat and he obediently sat down. "It's my truck... or at least it was. It runs on fuel, turning the wheels and making it move." She cast a sideways look at him. "Really fast."
"How fast?" He opened the glove compartment and rummaged through the papers inside.
Liberty grinned. "Faster than the fastest horse."
"I'd like to see that. If only you weren't out of fuel." Hector reached to play with the radio dials, but his eyes caught something. He scrambled out of the truck and fell to one knee, bowing low.
Liberty looked at him quizzically before turning her head to see Apollo standing there, smiling.
"Not you again," she grumbled, receiving a startled look from the prince.
"Hello, Miss Liberty," he said, practically oozing with ego. He nodded toward Hector. "Greetings, Prince Hector of Troy."
Hector's head bowed low again. "Apollo."
Liberty glared at the god. "What do you want this time? Me to save King Richard at the Crusades?"
Apollo leaned against the side of the vehicle and folded his arms across his chest. "Well, dearest descendant of Zeus, your task is complete. You've saved Troy. You will be going home now."
Hector gasped and Liberty swallowed hard. "Home? To the United States, home? To the year 2004, home?"
Apollo nodded, raking a hand through his hair. "Yes, child."
Hector ignored his inclination to remain silent and addressed the god of the Sun. "Please, Lord Apollo. Do not take her from me." He rose to his feet and walked around the car, standing in front of Apollo, next to the driver's side door. "She means everything to me. Do not send her away."
Apollo looked bored. "It is not my decision, Prince. Zeus is the one who is sending her back to her time."
"How can we prevent this?" Liberty pleaded. "I want to stay here!"
Apollo shrugged. "Don't ask me." He then vanished from sight.
Liberty leapt out of her truck and threw herself into Hector's arms. "I don't want to go! I want to stay with you!" she sobbed into his chest.
Charis sighed heavily as her leather sandals clicked against the polished marble floor of the great hall of the palace. It had been a day since Apollo came to Liberty and Hector, and there was a sad air through out the entire city. Hector and Liberty did not go to supper yesterday and today. Charis couldn't blame them. Paris didn't accompany her to supper tonight and hardly ate anything yesterday.
"What are we to do?" She thought out loud, as she stopped in the middle of the hallway. "We cannot defy a god...let alone Zeus himself..." She sighed as she balanced the tray of food in one hand, pulling close the robe of Paris' that she had borrowed with her free hand, trying to get some kind of warmth and comfort from it before continuing on her way back to her chambers.
As she walked past the door to Hector and Liberty's chamber she heard soft sobbing and Charis blinked away her own tears. She hated feeling this helpless and unable to ease the pain of her friend and brother-in-law. She carefully opened the door to her room and saw her husband as he stood next to the window looking out into space.
"Darling, I've brought some food...please at least eat a little bit..." She said in a gentle tone and Paris just nodded. "I'm going to go to the temple of Apollo and pray, perhaps that might do some good." Paris just nodded again and Charis went on her way.
"Curse you sand. Curse you sandals." Charis muttered under her breath as she stood on the steps of the shrine to Apollo. She shook the sand out of her sandals. After she was finished, Charis slipped her sandals back on her feet and made her way into the shrine. She stood in awe of how quickly they had rebuilt the shrine after the invasion by the Greeks. She headed inside to the altar, lit some incense placed it before a small statue of the god and dropped to her knees and began to pray.
"Please Apollo...I beg thee, not to take Liberty from us."
Liberty was slumped across the bed, her delicate fingers tracing lazy circles in the mattress. Hector paced the room in front of her, mumbling to himself and twisting his dark hair around his index finger. He stopped suddenly and she looked over at him, a hopeful look on her pale face.
Hector stared at her for a long moment before resuming his pacing, and she dropped her face into the bed.
"Maybe," she said softly, turning her head to the side. "Maybe it's good I go back."
Hector's head snapped in the direction of his love. "How can you say that? You mean so much to me... to Troy."
Liberty rolled onto her back and extended her hand, beckoning him to her. The prince moved to her side and sat on the bed near her, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips for a quick kiss.
"Well, this isn't my time. I also kind of miss my parents... and my dog." Liberty crawled to the side of the bed and slid her bag out from under it. She unsnapped it and pulled out her wallet, flipping it open. Hector looked inside at the pictures. "This is him. His name is Kody." She pulled out a picture of a Golden Retriever puppy and handed it to him. "I really miss him."
"And your friends too, right?" Hector smiled at the picture and handed it back to her.
Liberty bit her lip. "Some of them, yes, but I barely talked to any of them anymore. The ones I really cared about didn't live near me. I made them at college, across the country, and when I moved back home we lost contact. I miss my parents and my doggie most of all. I wish I could go back long enough to say goodbye and tell them not to worry, but I'd rather stay with you." She brought Hector's hand to her face and nuzzled it lovingly. "You, Paris, Charis, and Astyanax are the people I care about most." Both she and the prince looked into the cradle at the foot of the bed at Hector's sleeping son.
Hector slid to his feet and retrieved the infant, cradling him against his chest. The boy blinked up at his father with bright eyes, yawned, and gurgled happily.
Hector smiled and placed him in Liberty's waiting arms. She kissed his forehead and pressed her cheek to his head. "I barely know you, baby, but I love you anyway." She looked up at Hector and smiled sadly. "He alone makes the prospect of never going back to the future worth it. I want to see him grow tall. I want to see all the Trojan women throwing themselves at him." She blinked back tears. "You know, in the history I knew, the Greeks threw him off the wall after capturing the city."
Hector's heart almost stopped. He scooped his son back into his arms and cuddled him protectively. The boy, sensing his father's apprehension, whimpered softly.
Liberty looked out the window at the darkening clouds. "We can't really do anything about it anyway, can we?" She bit her lip as a servant came in to retrieve Hector's son for his bath and meal. "I mean, I could be gone in a flash whenever Zeus wanted, couldn't I? We have no choice in the matter. When the gods want me gone, I'm gone." She sighed heavily. "It's not an encouraging thought, I know, but it's the awful truth."
She leaned over and dug into her bag again, retrieving a metal bracelet from a side pocket. She slid off the bed and went to Hector, placing it in his hand. "Look, this link has a heart on it, and this one says love. If they take me, remember me by this bracelet. Remember that I love you more than the earth, the heavens, and everything in between."
Hector studied the bracelet as he slid it over his wrist, it was a little tight, but he didn't seem to care. He snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her to him, kissing the top of her head. "Well, I will not give you up without a fight. If Zeus wants to take you away from me, he better prepare for my wrath. I'll take on all of Olympus if I have to."
Liberty smiled and tapped his nose lightly with her finger. "That's worse than facing Achilles."
Hector smiled back. "And I beat Achilles... thanks to you."