"The Tears of Death?!"

"The very ones.." he said, and for a minute I could literally feel the icy blue vault of the sky crashing over my head.

"I thought they were only a myth!" I muttered under my breath, raising a hand to cover my hammering heart as the meaning of his words gradually began to sink in.

" Trust me, they're as real as Celesta herself!" he spited out, and judging by his sharp, metallic gaze, I could tell that he wanted nothing more than to strangle the brainless priestess who had started all the drama, with his bare hands.

" But Ares, that doesn't make any sense!...How could Draja have gotten them?! No mortal could find themselves in the presence of Death without…."

"No mortal indeed…" he clarified, and his frown only deepened even more, if possible.

" She must have had help from a friendly God …." I pensively stated, sucking in a harsh breath.

" I'll say…."

"Who do you think it could have been?"

"I wish I knew….."

"Do you think that Celesta…"

" No….Definitely not. It's not her style….Plus, she has nothing against you…or me for that matter…"

"Athena, then?"

He just shrugged lightly, biting his lower lip in a way that distracted my attention for a few moments from the apocalyptic mess I was in…

"Anyway...it's not the end of the world... Whomever it was, we'll figure it out as soon as I wake up, right?" I quickly composed myself, realizing that for the second time that day I had been staring at him with the same needy gaze that Argo usually has while craving for an apple….All this was getting pretty embarrassing….."Once the effect of the tears wears off…." I continued, only to choke on my own words the moment I noticed the subtle tension lining his jaw and the alarming way in which he avoided my gaze.

. "What?! If the legend is true, in a couple of days I should be up and about….?"I insisted, clinging on to hope.

Suddenly though, there it was again, that same bitter laugh that had given me the shivers a few minutes before, as if letting me know just how ridiculously naïve I was.

" What?"

No answer came though and that only got me even edgier. As if yanked by strings, I grabbed the collar of his vest and pushed him aggressively a few steps back, overly irritated by the fact that he was obviously keeping something from me and I sure wasn't in the mood to play the detective.

" Ares! I'm worried enough as it is, there's no need for you to add any extra tension!" I exploded and if I had been under the impression that my heart was about to skip from my chest earlier, now it was hitting against my ribcage with so much force that I could literally feel it stretching uncomfortably the skin on my left breast.

"What is the oldest memory you can visually access?" he replied quietly, angling his head slightly to the side, and focusing persistently on my forehead as if he could actually see through my skull, straight into my labyrinthine brain and find out from there whatever he needed to know.

"What does that have to do with Celesta's tears?" I bit back, way too blinded in my revolt to read in between the lines.

"Just answer me…" he insisted, giving me a formal, miniature smile.

"I don't know…"

" Do you remember your childhood?" he wanted to know, the tips of his fingertips now drawing delicately the contour of my eyebrow.

" Of course I remember my childhood!" I snorted, rolling my eyes at his ludicrous suppositions.

" What do you remember?"

The interrogatory continued as if only meaning to irk me some more.

"We were fighting a lot…..my brothers and I…..And mother was always shouting at us…." I hastily answered, barely controlling the pressing need to scream at him.

"Your brothers…..?"

"Yeah…..Torris and …."

"And….?" he echoed, waiting for an answer.

All of the sudden, I became paralyzed with fear.

" And…." I struggled, but the word I was desperately looking for, obstinately refused to come out…

"Lyceus…" he said it for me after awhile, a hushed answer that, despite its impossibly low note, screeched my eardrums in the most disturbing of ways and even though he was sweetly caressing my cheek now- obviously in the vain attempt to comfort me- there was no way he could perform such miracle- not when I could clearly see that my despair had managed to get to him as well.

" Ares….what's happening? Is this normal? Is it the effect of the tears? What?..."

" The tea….." he whispered, and I could swear it was horror I saw in his eyes before he left me standing there and casually walked a few steps in the direction of the oak tree.

"What about it….?"

A few more seconds passed before he decided that it was no use lying to me….I was bound to find everything out sooner or later anyway….

" I'm pretty sure it didn't contain Celesta's tears alone…"

…So I was right…Just as I suspected, there was more to the story than it met the eye.

"It didn't ?"

"No….." he said with a shake of his head." I'm telling you, whoever did this, must hate you…us…big time…"

" What are you talking about? What did they put in that damned tea?" I yelled, unable to control my anxiety any longer…

"The water of the Lethe…."

"The River of Oblivion…." I breathed out, instinctively covering my mouth with the back of my hand as if I shouldn't even have said that out loud . "What does this mean?" I inquired through our bond, too shocked to utter any other sound.

"It depends….."

"Depends on what?"

" If the worst case scenario happened ….."

" So there's more…."I concluded, glaring at him, the expression of a wounded beast plastered on my face.

" They might have added a few drops from the waters of the Styx….."

Those last words had the effect of a wet leather whip hitting mercilessly against every part of my naked body...

" Why would they do that….?"

"Celesta's tears alone would have put you to sleep- for three days in a small dosage and an eternal slumber in a higher one…The waters of the Lethe are supposed to gradually erase your memory…They are used on the souls of the dead – those who get to cross to the other side, that is – and it's the perfect antidote to keep them from missing their family until the fairy tale reunion occurs…"

" That's why I've started to forget things….and people….."

" As for the waters of the Styx….Let's just say that even Zeus himself fears their effect…."

My eyes must have widened in anticipation, and his temporary lack of answer said it all…

"They're supposed to torment the ones who end up in Tartraus…" I voiced it for him.

There was a long pause before he gave me some extra information, his voice low and weak as if he were dying.

" They have the unique power of making one constantly think about the person they love most…."

" All the while knowing that they will never get the chance to be with that person again…" I ended, on the same lugubrious note.

" The three of them combined make the Dreams of the Damned…"

"….Of the Damned?"

" Yeah…..Even Gods tremble at the sound of it….They are supposed to erase every little memory from your mind until you gradually forget everything about everyone you have ever known. Every face, every place, every conversation…..In the end, you will even forget your own identity….Everything…"

"With the exception of the one you love…"

"And that you will never have….."

" How long do I have….before this happens?" I just had to ask…I couldn't help myself.

" It's a wild guess, but….three days…..at most…."

" There must be a cure for this, right?" I inquired, trying to hold on to the last ounce of optimism I had left.

"If there is, there's just one single person on the face of the planet who can help us..."

"Celesta…"

"She's our best bet...if she's willing enough..." he emphasized, gazing pensively towards the horizon.

" Ok….so don't go anyway then….I'll be back as soon as I have some news…" he then added, right out of nowhere, getting ready to leave.

"Ares…." I murmured, grabbing his hand and squeezing it hard. ….I hadn't felt fear on very many occasions up to that moment, but I must admit at that point I was absolutely terrified.. "What if I forget you?"

He just smiled at me…A warm, seductive, familiar smile, that in less than a second brought a sparkle of joy to my teary eyes.

"I'll make sure to refresh your memory. I do hope that I'm not that easy to forget though…."

A rough kiss on the lips followed, taking me completely by surprise.…

"This should keep you thinking about me awhile longer…."

I can't say I was completely convinced though and the tension in my muscles must have given me away….

"….You belong to me, Princess, remember? Trust me I won't let you forget. You're mine, and nobody takes what's mine..."

Just as fast as he made my mind swirl, he vanished from sight, and for a minute I felt almost reassured by his words….Nonetheless, as soon as I got back to the oak tree and my hand touched the thick bark an unprecedented feeling of emptiness took over me…as if a chunk of my soul was missing….

I gazed blankly at the letters engraved on its surface, and I smiled faintly while my fingers went a couple of times over the X, just to frown darkly at the L.

" Who could have had the guts to mark their name on my tree?" I muttered, narrowing my eyes at the sight...