Vanthea: The Rise of Alduin

In the midst of writing a letter, he was suddenly startled to his

core by the ear-deafening sounds of thumping drums and blar-

ing horns. It was early October of 320 BCE in planet 0x403, way

before our main protagonist was born. Instruments such as

these were used in wars and for alerting people of coming dan-

gers. His skin was crawling with rushing blood and adrenaline

coursing through his veins, feeling everything incredibly vividly.

‘Stay inside and protect yourself with my Dory! Don’t open

the door for anyone else but me, got it?’ He said as he was grab-

bing his sword from the cabinet and rushing towards the door.

‘Be safe.’

Her voice was cut abruptly as Theseus slammed the door shut

and rushed to the village’s square in order to group with the rest

of the men. When the sounds of his footsteps diminished she grabbed the spear and prayed to Ahura Mazda. The screech-

ing (I hate this kind of noise by the way) noises of blades being

sharpened against the whetstone got louder and louder, accom-

panied by armor clanking as it was handed down by slaves to

their masters, as he approached the square. Screams of women

and children were heard too but that would be obvious, no?

‘Hey!’ Theseus approached chatting villagers, ‘Have the out-

laws reached the main gates yet? I see most of us aren’t ready to

fight.’

‘Not yet, thank the gods, but it doesn’t really matter. We

outnumber them and have procured a very thorough defense

plan for our village,’ a brown-haired man named Lysander of

Thebes answered.

He was the village’s commander and an incredible fighter. A

very tall man, one hundred and eighty centimeters tall to be

exact, making him the tallest man in the village passing Theseus

by ten. His status, hazel eyes and authoritative aura made him

a very popular suitor.

‘Nicander, could you come with me to assist the guards at

the gates until the rest get ready to fight? It could be fun,’ he

asked Nicander, a broad-bred and born Spartan wearing his

usual vivid red cloak, it took only one good look at him to feel

chills down your spine.

‘Just like the good old days, huh? We should get there quickly

before the rest spoil all the fun.’

The pair started running towards the gates. They were great

friends having served together under king ‘Alexander the Great

of Macedon’. Theseus was thirty years of age and Nicander was

thirty-three. Their families were a part of the first residents

of their village, ‘Meliboea’, having helped reconstruct it from

the ground up. After a few minutes of running they finally

reached the main gates. Apparently a group of bandits had

already breached the gates in the form of a ‘Phalanx’, with the guards delaying their march. A quick glance by Theseus revealed

that they consisted of ten Hoplites, five archers, and five armed

with javelins.

‘We are fucked, aren’t we?’ Theseus said as they got closer.

The guards ceased fire when they saw Theseus and Nicander

approaching, deciding to join them in melee combat.

‘Do you really believe you stand a chance?’ One of the out-

laws said as he was laughing, ‘Fuck off and no harm will come

to you.’

‘Where’s the fun in that? We are prepared to fight you, are

you?’ Nicander said mockingly and laughed. ‘Did you hear that

men? These guys have a death wish! Fine by us, your deaths are

in your hands.’

‘This is going to be fun,’ Nicander shouted full of energy.

The pair drew their weapons and went into fighting stances

standing back-to-back. Together, they faced their opponents

with determination in their eyes.

‘You should drop your spear and shield, Nicander.’ ‘Why?’

‘You wanted this battle to be fun.’

He obliged and dropped them both, switching to use noth-

ing but his sword. The phalanx went into a circle formation;

the first one came from Theseus’s left and thrust his spear to-

wards his head; he masterly dodged the attack with only a few

strands of dark hair being cut by its tip. The pair dodged and at-

tacked in complete sync while also trying to include the guards in

their utter harmony of violence. The cracking of spears against

swords and shields, the screams of agony and the sounds of

blood spilling were like a melody to Nicander’s ears. Sadly, the

fight seemed to have no end. With the fall of one enemy an-

other two breached the gates; it was like fighting the legendary

Hydra.

‘We can’t hold much more,’ Theseus said, panting, his breaths

heavy as he swung his sword, ‘They are too many!’

‘Just hold on a little longer, we got this!’

Their bodies ached and their muscles burnt with fatigue but

despite that they continued fighting valiantly. With an arrow

piercing the last guard’s left eye the band of bandits had finally

breached the gates completely. Before the pair stood a band of

about fifty men, a lot larger than the usual raiding parties that

had attacked before. Nicander and Theseus looked at its size

with awe; they had never faced so many enemies at once.

‘Okay, we are royally fucked. Fall back!’ Nicander yelled.

The bandits’ leader stepped forward, looking at them with a

smile.

‘Hoplites! Phalanx!’ He commanded.

‘Phalanx!’ The hoplites shouted in return, their shouts thun-

dered through the air, echoing around the village.

‘Go through each house and each barn. Pillage and ravage

everything you see. Leave no one alive, before the village militia

arrives.’

They went through the first house, taking everything they con-

sidered of value and killed its residents. As they changed their

gaze towards the next house they heard distant rumble, growing

stronger by the second into an ear-deafening roar. Finally they

had arrived, the village militia! The ground trembling beneath

their feet, their armor clanking and rattling with each step. Their

battle cries pumping adrenaline into their veins, causing fear

amongst the bandits. In their numbers stood Lysander with his

classic bronze cuirass reflecting the sun like a mirror. The raid

was dismantled rather quickly, in about an hour, with only a few

friendly casualties. It was due to the heavy training of most of

them during their time in king Alexander’s world-conquest cam-

paign only a few years ago, and most importantly, Lysander’s

incredible commanding abilities.

A few minutes later the villagers were instructed to regroup

in the square in order to assess the damages. Three men fell that day, the two guards at the main gates and one member of the

village militia. Thanks to their sacrifice only the first few houses

were ransacked; their inhabiters slain. The atmosphere grew

somber as the villagers went their separate ways; some went

to treat the wounded and some went to prepare graves for the

upcoming funerals. Some went to console those whose families

and homes were destroyed. Theseus’s wife, Shiraz, escorted

him back home, gazing at him with sheer pride in her beautiful

gray eyes, hoping he wasn’t harmed. She had stunning olive

skin, just like her husband, and lush brown hair. She was of

noble Persian descent. They met in ‘Susa’, the Persian capital

and her hometown. At the time king Alexander arranged a mass

wedding, called the ‘Susa Weddings’, but Theseus had already

met her before his king managed to find him a worthy bride. He

asked his king for his blessing and received it with a smile.

When they finally arrived home she hugged him so tightly

that she could feel his heart racing. After a few moments, she

looked at her husband; his eyes were dull and tired. She helped

him remove his breastplate, unfastening the straps and then

lifting it carefully over his head and placing it gently on the

ground. His clothes were dirty from sweat, dirt, and blood.

She told him to start preparing the stove, the herbs and the oils

while she went to fetch water for a bath. When she returned

she poured the heated water into the bath and helped him into

in. As he soaked in the soothing, warm water, she thoroughly

scrubbed his skin to remove any dirt or blood. Each scrub was

done with the utmost care. She loved him greatly.

‘I was worried sick! I heard from my friend that you and

Nicander went alone to face them! Why do you keep doing this

shit?! You could have gotten yourselves killed!’ Her voice shaking

with fear and few tears dropped from his eyes, ‘I can’t bear the

thought of losing you! And the village... The village needs you!’

‘There was no other way to delay the attack; if we hadn’t

helped the guards would have been slaughtered for nothing. If

we waited who knows how many villagers would have been killed at the end?’ He took a deep breath and added, ‘Thankfully, we

are okay. And most importantly, you are okay.’

Shiraz took a deep breath to compose herself.

‘I understand,’ she said.

‘There is something I wish to talk to you about. I want to set

out on a journey to the north and I want you to join me.’

‘The north? What do you plan on doing there?’

‘There is a cave Theron told me about. It’s located near ‘Gold-

fall Lake’ and he told me of an urban legend about it. ‘Whoever

enters doesn’t return’. It piques my curiosity.’

‘Theron again? Why do you always entertain his shenani-

gans? Remember when he told you that red clothes make brown

mountain bears fall asleep? But instead you were almost decap-

itated by one!’

‘Yes... But! Even if the cave doesn’t actually exist we would

still have seen great views and have enjoyed some quality time.

You always told me you wanted some alone time. Life in the

village is getting way too stale for me, you know how much I

love adventures. That part of me is exactly what had gotten us

to meet each other in the first place.’

‘I understand you my love, I am just worried. How long

would the journey last?’

‘I am not sure. I have yet to plan the route I am going to

take. I will let you know once the plan is fully mapped out. But

know that I plan on leaving as soon as possible.’

‘I see. Unfortunately though I can’t join you my love, Thesmophoria is about to begin and I am one of the few responsible

for preparing the dough offerings for the ritual. Please join me

tomorrow for breakfast, I would like to have a meal with you

before you depart.’ She smiled.

‘I will, I promise. I assume you don’t plan on participating

in the festival this year either?’

‘Thank you,’ her face lit up with a smile, ‘And yes, I don’t plan

on participating beyond helping to set it up. Speaking of food, I

think it’s time for dinner. I plan on making a lamb stew, could

you go and get some meat?’

He smiled, kissed her forehead and went outside to the sheep

pen and opened the fence. He grabbed a sheep and took it to a

secluded place behind the house so that the others wouldn’t get

startled.

‘I am sorry,’ he whispered to the unsuspecting animal before

swiftly drawing his razor-sharp dagger, decapitating it as fast

as he could with one quick motion, ‘Artemis! Come eat!’

He threw the head next to the puppy and then took a piece of

rope and tightened it around the sheep’s neck to stop the bleed-

ing. He held it by its feet and put it on his shoulders, walking

back home.

‘I’m back,’ he said as he entered the house.

‘Took you long enough! I had the ingredients prepared a

few minutes ago!’ She teased with a playful smile on her lips,

‘Go cut the meat and I will brew the stew in the meantime.’

He took his dagger and proceeded to skin the sheep.

‘Oh, by the way, Aristaeus passed by while you were grab-

bing the sheep. He was looking for you.’

‘Aristaeus? Really? It’s been a while since we’ve last spoken.

What did he want?’

‘He told me that he heard about your plan to head to that

cave. I think he wishes to join you.’

‘Alright, I will pay him a visit once the stew starts cooking,’

he said as he finished cutting up the meat into small pieces and

handed them to his wife with a kiss to her left cheek, ‘I will go

visit Aristaeus now. I will be back in a few minutes.’

After a few minutes of walking he reached the house and knocked

on the door.

‘Who is it?’ A voice asked.

‘Theseus, is Aristaeus home? My wife told me he was looking

for me.’

‘Oh, Theseus! Come in, come in! Yes, I was expecting you.’

Aristaeus opened the door with a smile and shook Theseus’s

hand. He was four years older and a bit shorter than Lysander;

he had brown eyes and curly black hair, dressed elegantly in

a purple Chiton and wore a golden necklace around his neck.

This attire was exclusive to people of high status, like merchants,

and Aristaeus was one.

‘Well, Aristaeus, what was it you wanted?’

‘I see you are in a hurry,’ a smile appeared on his face.

‘Yes, my wife is waiting for me for dinner,’ Theseus chuckled

back.

‘Fair enough, I will not waste any time then. I heard Theron

told you about a certain cave?’

‘He did.’

‘I would like to join you; adventures intrigue me and I have

heard you have had a whole lot of them in your life.’

‘Will Lyria be okay with that?’

‘I haven’t even asked her yet as I wasn’t sure you were going.

But I am sure she will, she is a very supportive woman.’

‘Alright then! I wanted someone to join me anyway. Meet

me later today to plan the route, in an hour at the square,’ they

shook each other’s hands again, ‘I have to head back now, my

wife is waiting for me.’

‘Thank you, see you in an hour!’ He escorted him to the door

and waved his hand goodbye.

Theseus waved back, closed the door behind him and headed

back home. When he opened the door the appetizing aroma of

the stew swiftly rushed to his nose.

‘Food is ready,’ she welcomed him with a smile.

A plate, a fork and a spoon were laid on the table. They sat down

and began eating.

‘Sorry it took me so long, my dear.’

‘it’s okay, what was it that he wanted? Was I right?’ She

smirked with a face full of pride.

‘As always, yes, he wanted to join me,’ he said with a smile,

knowing her next reaction.

‘Ha! Well, of course. I am always right after all,’ Shiraz

chuckled covering her mouth with her hand, ‘And what did you

say to him?’

‘I said yes. We’ll meet in an hour in order to plan the journey.’

‘I am glad you found someone to join you, helps me worry

less. Does that mean you will leave tomorrow morning?’

‘Probably.’

They continued eating in silence. After they finished he kissed

her and thanked her for the food. He grabbed a map and headed

to the square. Apparently Aristaeus had already been waiting

and waved to catch his attention. They parted ways once the plan

was set and went back home to rest after today’s battle. Shiraz

was already sleeping tightly; he couldn’t help but kiss her gently

on the forehead before drifting off to sleep. As the morning sun

peeked through the window the sounds of chirping birds and

crowing roosters filled the air. They woke up roughly at the same

time and prepared breakfast. Homemade bread with cheese

and olives on the side. Then, she went over the checklist.

‘Alright, we packed everything. Let’s go over the list again.

Sword and bow?’

‘Check.’

‘Food?’

‘Check.’

‘Medicine?’

‘Check.’

‘Battle Armor?’

‘I prefer fighting light so I only brought my Linothorax.’

‘Warm Clothes?’

‘Check.’

‘General tools and oil for a torch?’

‘Right, I forgot! I will pack some now, Thank you.’

‘This is everything, you are ready to go!’ She smiled proudly,

‘Where will you meet?’

‘I told him to wait for me at his house.’

‘See you soon, then. I will miss you!’ She hugged him and

kissed him goodbye.

Theseus kissed her back and left, headed for Aristaeus’ house,

who was already waiting for him with his wife Lyria who insisted

on wishing them luck on this journey. They thanked her and left

on horseback.

‘She is a fine woman.’

‘Thank you, she truly is,’ Aristaeus thanked him, ‘By the way,

did you know I once went fishing in Goldfall Lake?’

‘Oh, really? What did you catch?’

‘Only a shoe someone threw in,’ they both laughed.

‘Do you want to lead the way? I’ve never been there before,’

Theseus asked.

‘Yes, I would like that.’

He slowed his pace to allow his companion to pass and lead the

way.

‘Do you know why the lake is called this way?’ Theseus asked.

‘Hmm... There is an old legend about a foreigner who came

to this land long ago. It says he hid a treasure he had stolen from

Athens at the bottom of the lake. When he went to retrieve it he

was ambushed by Athenian soldiers and was killed with it still

down there. The treasure might still be there.’

‘Yes, but why ‘Godfall‘?’

‘I have no clue,’ he laughed.

‘If this legend is famous I wonder if anyone has ever tried

to take the treasure.’

‘Maybe, it is rumored that an evil ‘Naiad’ is residing in this

lake, waiting for a greedy person to turn into fresh dinner.’

‘Then why the fuck did you go down there? Did you manage

to see anything?’

‘I was young and foolish and fortunately I didn’t come across

anything. Maybe it too is just a legend,’ Aristaeus pondered.

‘I would like to check it out once we arrive. Did you bring a

blessed amulet and sage (to burn) to repel negative energies?’

‘I did and I also brought some blessed water and salt. I told

Lyria about the legends surrounding this lake and let’s just say

that she got pretty worried.’

After a few hours of riding their stomachs started to growl and

their legs went numb from riding for so long. They decided to

dismount so they could stretch and feel the blood flowing freely

through their limbs, and more importantly, eat lunch. Each

took out the lunch their wives had made for them and once done

eating they continued riding forward. They took many short-

cuts suggested by Aristaeus, avoiding official roads as much as

possible in fear of highwaymen which were quite common in

that era of political instability and civil unrest. Eventually the

sun started to set and they stopped to set up a tent and a bonfire

for warmth.

‘I’m starving. Do you have any suggestions for what we

could eat?’

‘Oh, you know what? I think there are some rabbits around

here. They could be pretty tasty with the spices we’ve brought

with us.’

‘Alright. I see you also brought a bow, do you know how to

use it?’

‘Never used it to hunt something, only trained to use it for

combat.’

‘Well, tell me if you need my help,’ Theseus laughed.

‘Fuck off,’ Aristaeus laughed.

They grabbed their bows, crouched and began walking slowly

and silently. Theseus led the way this time, trying to pick up tracks and noises of hares. All of a sudden, Aristaeus patted on

his back, signaling him to wait and went on all fours to observe

something on the ground. They were looking at animal feces.

He observed it thoroughly and then touched it.

‘What, the fuck, are you doing? That’s disgusting,’ Theseus

was about to puke out his dinner.

‘Shhh!’ He put his finger on his mouth to shush him, ‘I

am doing what any good hunter would do. You can learn a lot

from animal feces. When you touch it you can determine its

temperature. If it’s very warm for example it would mean that

the animal isn’t very far away. Or, if you look at its texture and

color you can tell if the animal is a vegetarian or a carnivore. All

this information could really help us, you shmuck.’

‘And what did you find out?’

‘That it smells like shit,’ he laughed, ‘I will be honest with

you, I’ve never tried this before nor was I trained to do it. I just

wanted to try it out and your serious face when you listened

to me explaining it made me feel good,’ Aristaeus laughed as

Theseus looked at him in utter disgust.

They continued searching, Aristaeus helping Theseus to observe

the tracks. Suddenly, a loud rustling in the bushes caught their

attention. They quickly hid behind a bush and drew their bows,

trying to stay silent as adrenaline coursed through their veins.

Was it food, or a foe? Then, confusing silence engulfed the air.

Just when they were about to leave and continue their search a

wild brown bear appeared out of nowhere. Their skin started

prickling with goosebumps and they could feel their hearts

pounding in their ears like a drum. All they could do was hold

their breath and pray that the animal wouldn’t notice them. The

pair had never fought together, let alone against a beast as big

and strong as a bear. Thankfully, the bear was unable to locate

them and just walked away. Aristaeus let out a long sigh and

lied down on the ground to rest, his arms and legs spread.

‘That was terrifying! It felt as if Hades himself was breathing

upon me.’

‘We need to get going. It’s already too late and we’ve found

nothing to eat yet.’

After an hour of searching they had successfully hunted three

rabbits. Once they finished eating dinner they discussed their

plans for tomorrow and then went straight to sleep. Sadly, their

deep sleep was abruptly shattered by a blood-curdling scream

with jolted them both to their feet.

‘What the fuck was that?’ Theseus said, their hearts pound-

ing as they reached for their weapons.

‘Help!’ Another scream was heard.

‘I have no idea, put on some armor and arm yourself fast!’

Theseus drew his sword.

They put on their armor quickly and followed the screams. Hav-

ing located the source of the screams they stopped a few meters

away and hid behind a tree, to observe and prepare for danger.

A caravan was flipped on the ground with a decapitated horse

attached to it. Amidst the chaos, barbarically butchered corpses

were scattered around, with fresh blood flowing amongst them,

its metallic scent dominating the smell of fresh flowers in the air.

They saw two bare-chested men with no shoes on and broken

chains around their arms and legs flailing at an elderly couple

relentlessly. Theseus recalled hearing about a few prisoners es-

caping from a nearby prison, connected the dots and signaled

his partner to help him attack. They rushed to put an end to

it and struck them down without much effort. Unfortunately,

they only managed to save the wife. Grateful tears poured down

her eyes as she offered them anything they wanted as a reward.

Aristaeus declined the offer at first but agreed to take some food

after she insisted. Theseus decided to take the expensive amulet

she was wearing around her neck (what a dick!).

The sun began to set as they continued heading north, cast-

ing long shadows across the forest. They settled down again to

eat and sleep. Tomorrow, they should finally reach the lake! They

woke up peacefully the next morning to the soothing light of the

sun and birds chirping around. They ate breakfast, mounted their horses and resumed their journey towards the lake. After

four hours of riding, had finally arrived. Theseus’s eyes lit up

with an idea.

‘How about we stop here for a few minutes and just sit and

relax by the lake? The view is beautiful here!’

They sat down, kicking their sandals off and putting their feet

in the cold, refreshing water. Leaning back to enjoy the peaceful

surroundings and took it all in.

‘Say, Theseus...’

‘Yes?’

‘Do you ever just feel like running away?’

‘From your wife? I thought you loved her,’ Theseus raised an

eyebrow in curiosity.

‘No! Of course, I meant running away with her! The village

life is terribly boring for me, despite the wealth, status and

comfort I have from my stores. I am tired of the daily routine,

the same boring tasks, the same boring days, the same people.

Everything is the same and I just want to see new things.’

‘Actually... I don’t know, to be honest with you. I like the

way things are in the village. I was finally able to bring it back

from the ashes and rebuilt it into something great. Finally, I

have reached somewhat inner peace. You don’t know what it’s

like going from one country to the other on a thirteen-year-

long ambitious campaign. Nothing was constant, except for

the frequency of changes of course. I was able to experience

new cultures and gastronomy yet there was no place I could call

home.’

‘I-I understand. I will talk about this with Lyria. Maybe I

just need to take more breaks and travel.She doesn’t know of

this yet.’

‘You definitely should. She does seem very supportive, and

after all communication is key in a relationship.’

‘Alright, tha—’

Aristaeus stopped mid-sentence, startling his friend. Theseus

looked to his left but he wasn’t even there anymore! His heart began to race as he started to panic. How could he have dis-

appeared so quickly? He noticed a few bubbles appearing on

the surface of the water and immediately decided to dive in.

The salty water hurt his eyes but he just had to follow through.

He didn’t manage to find anything in the water besides a skull

and a pair of boots. The skull seemed completely regular at first

glance but then he noticed a necklace on it, Aristaeus’ necklace.

He quickly grabbed his friend’s skull with his right hand and

managed to surface just before he ran out of breath. He had no

idea what had just happened, but despite the sheer mystery of

it alll one that would usually intrigue him deeply; the realization

that his comrade was gone was stronger. He gently wrapped

his friend’s skull with a cloth and put it in his bag, having at

least something minimal for Lyria to bury. He hated this type

of situations. Having to tell someone about the death of their

loved ones was never easy for him, despite his sheer experience

with it.

‘I am sorry, Aristaeus. I shouldn’t have brought you here,’

he was trying to hold the tears dripping down his cheeks.

He took his friend’s necklace and wore it around his neck as a

sign of respect. Out of the blue he felt as if he were stabbed, and

the necklace slowly started changing its colors to only black and

white. He tried to take it off, but the harder he tried, the harder

it seemed to pierce his skin, holding it firmly.

‘What the fuck? What the fuck, what the fuck, what the

fuck?! Maybe the village’s elders could help me, yes! Or a priest!’

He thought to himself, breathing heavily.

He recalled Theron’s claims about the cave being only a few me-

ters east of the lake and started searching for it, his mind still

racing about Aristaeus’s death and the bizarre necklace. After

a few hours of agonizing searching he came to the realization

that, once again, Theron had lied.

‘All this... All of this was for absolutely fucking nothing!

Theron, you son of a whore! You are responsible for everything!’

His screams shattering the soothing atmosphere of the flowing lake, his fists clenched at his sides, tears streaming down his

face as he stared down the lake, ‘I should have listened to you,

Shiraz. Why do you have to be right all the time?! I should have

listened to you! I failed you and most of all, I failed Aristaeus.’

After a few minutes of crying and laughing crazily, he regained

his composure and headed back to the horses. He tied Aristaeus’

horse to his and began riding back home.

‘Two days until I return... In two days I will have to tell the

village of this tragedy and will finally excommunicate Theron,’

Theseus thought as guilt ate him from inside, completely clue-

less of what had just happened.

‘I am almost home,’ he said to himself as he saw the village’s

gates being reconstructed from afar, ‘How am I going to break

the news to Lyria? What am I going to tell the elders about this

necklace? They would surely accuse me of meddling in dark

magic! And what about Theron? This is all because of him! Ugh,

it doesn’t fucking matter now. Before anything else I have to

inform Aristaeus’ family.’

As he reached what used to be the village’s gates, Theseus gently

pulled the reins, slowing his horse to a trot. He aimed to reach

the square, to tell the crier to call everyone to gather. The vil-

lagers noticed him and welcomed him. When he finally arrived

he got off his saddle, left leg first, and went to the village-crier’s

house. He knocked on the door with a rhythm of urgency and

uneasiness.

‘Hey Theseus, Welcome back. How was your adventure?’

The crier welcomed him warmly.

‘Thank you, and I apologize for being so rude, but I am not

here for idle chatter. I need you to gather everyone as soon as

possible. This matter cannot wait.’

‘Oh, okay then. Can you help me off this chair? I am getting

a bit old these days,’ he chuckled, getting off his dark wooden

chair with Theseus’s help.

They walked out of his house and went to the raised platform.

There, trhe crier grabbed an old and narrow bronze horn, took one big breath in and blew into it, making a loud and piercing

sound that was heard across the village.

‘I can see Aristaeus isn’t with you, I assume that is why you

wanted me to call everyone.’

Theseus nodded in somber agreement. Not even a few seconds

passed before people started swarming out of their houses and

faced the square. A few minutes passed by and he finally saw

Lyria and Shiraz coming together, the true recipients of his

depressing message. Once everyone arrived it was his time to

announce what had occurred. They were waiting for him to

speak, both seated and standing.

‘I don’t know how to even begin. I-I-I am so sorry, Lyria... I

am so, so sorry...’

Lyria seemed confused at first but as she looked at his weary,

dark eyes, her eyes dilated and all she could feel was dread.

Noticing his sad tone, Lyria spread her lips, quivering.

‘Has something happened to Aristaeus? Where is my hus-

band? Theseus, please tell me this is not what I am thinking it

to be,’ she could feel the tears around her hazelnut eyes, blink-

ing rapidly, her lips trembling as she struggled to hold back the

tears.

‘I am sorry... But it is true, and the sadder part is, I don’t

even know how it unfolded.’

Lyria had lost not just her husband but her fight to hold back

the tears.

‘You were supposed to protect him!’ She cried out, almost

falling to the ground but Shiraz held and hugged her, tearing

up in sympathy.

Her cries had definitely reached the gods, as you could feel a few

drops falling from the heavens, in harmony with Lyria’s tears.

Shiraz turned her sight to her husband, seeking his reassurance,

but he looked even more lost than Lyria was.

‘I am sorry Lyria. I have failed your husband and this is

a debt that I will have to pay for all my life. I tried my best to

protect him but despite my best efforts I failed. I am sorry.’

‘I don’t give a damn about your best efforts. I want my son

back!’ Aristaeus’ mother’s voice pierced through the noise of the

crowd.

‘That I unfortunately cannot give you. What I can give you

at least is the tiny bit of what I know of his final moments...’

Theseus paused, ‘We stopped at Goldfall Lake to wade in the

water. Aristaeus opened up to me and told me that he wants to

go on a grand adventure, with you, Lyria. But before we finished

talking Aristaeus’s voice had abruptly disappeared, and with

it, Aristaeus himself. He was gone in a split second. I didn’t

manage to see anything or anyone.’

‘What?’

‘Yes, I thought he fell in the water so I dived in, to try to

get him out of there, but I saw no sign of him... The only thing

I found is this skull,’ he took it out from his bag, unwrapped

it and showed it to everyone, ‘I only able to recognize it as his

because his necklace was resting on top of it.’

‘And what about the necklace? I gave it to him the night

before our marriage.’

‘I decided to wear it so I would never be able to forget him.

But then something bizarre happened, the necklace suddenly

transformed into this,’ he took off his shirt, revealing the weird

monochromatic necklace that clenched against his skin, ‘It’s

even weirder than it looks. I can’t even get it off. The harder I

try, the stronger these fangs pierce into my my chest. It feels

like I would have to tear my skin off just to remove it.’

‘Could that mean that he is still alive? Maybe this necklace

is fake, maybe this is the work of some evil witch?’ Lyria tried

summoning a shed of hope.

‘Lyria, if this is true, we are dealing with something much

stronger than us,’ a village elder named Xenophon stood up,

assisted by his staff.

He was a fragile old man but he wore a strong and long white

beard that compensated for that and made the villagers respect

his words. He was wearing a pendant in the shape of a wine cup.

‘The only way we might be able to deal with this would be by

contacting the oracle of Larissa. And maybe even that wouldn’t

be enough and we would have to go to Alexandria in Egypt.’

Aristaeus’s father stood up.

‘We must do something! Nothing makes sense, even if

Lyria’s theory is incorrect. How was my son killed for just wad-

ing in the water, while Theseus is completely fine even after

swimming in it? We should be contacting every single oracle in

Hellas!’

‘The elders,’ a village elder signaled to the other elders that

sat behind him to stand up, ‘Are going to discuss this matter

with Theseus and Lysander. I kindly advise you to prepare the

funeral in the meantime.’

‘Our son is missing or dead and you expect me to just sit

around? What kind of a father would do that?!’

They discussed the matter for hours until eventually the family

had calmed down and declared an official day for the funeral.

They would only be able to bury the skull that Theseus managed

to retrieve. The funeral was to take place in two days; until then,

Aristaeus’s family would be hosting meals in his house and ac-

cept everyone’s condolences.

‘I will see you next time, then,’ the village-crier put a hand

on Theseus’s shoulder, who stayed there with his wife, and left

with the rest.

‘You shouldn’t blame yourself. You didn’t know it would

come to this. Aristaeus’s death is not your fault! He was well

aware of the dangers that this adventure could impose and he

made the call by himself,’ she hugged him tightly and said.

‘That doesn’t even matter... And guess what? The cave had

never existed in the first place! I should have listened to you.

Theron is a liar and I will exile him completely from Hellas as

soon as I manage to convince the elders. My curiosity has got

the better of me...’

‘I understand my love, but you’ve got to let it go. It wasn’t

your fault and you should accept that,’ she looked into his eyes,

‘Come, I will cook you dinner and then we will go to sleep.’

‘Thank you,’ he kissed her in gratitude.

They returned home and ate dinner. A meal consisting of fish,

rice and olives. They took a hot bath and went to bed, seeking

each other’s comfort in their embrace and falling sound asleep

right after. Theseus woke up to the smell of boiled eggs as the

first rays of light came through the window. He felt relaxed

despite the events that had unfolded. Being back home at last

had made him feel at ease. He rolled over his blanket and dressed

in a black Chiton with brown sandals made of leather.

‘Good morning,’ he kissed his wife.

‘How did you sleep? I didn’t want to disturb you, you looked

very relaxed,’ she said with a smile, the tone of her voice higher

than usual, ‘I also made breakfast from the eggs our chickens

have laid this morning.’

A slight smile popped on his face.

‘I could smell it, and yes, I am very relaxed thanks to you,

my love,’ he hugged her, ‘Could you come with me afterwards to

pay a visit at Aristaeus’s house? I have to drop an offering before

I meet Lysander and the village elders to talk about everything.’

‘Yes, absolutely. What will you give them?’

‘An amulet I got from a woman Aristaeus and I saved on our

way to the cave. Here, take a look,’ he took out a golden amulet

with a red gem in the middle and four different-colored gems

surrounding it.

‘That is one expensive-looking amulet. It would be a fine

offering. I like it,’ she looked at it with awe.

At long last breakfast was ready. Boiled eggs with bread, olives

and grapes. They occasionally discussed the journey he had

taken but remained silent for the most part. Once done eating

Theseus disposed of the leftovers and Shiraz went to prepare

for their visit. She wore a teal Persian dress made of velvet, a golden bracelet and a golden necklace with Lapis Lazuli on the

medallion. He held her hand and they went outside, breathing

in the refreshing morning air. When they reached Aristaeus’s

house they saw a few people passing by, paying their condo-

lences. Some were nobles, some merchants, he must had been

well-known. They stepped through the open door, met the gaze

of Aristaeus’s distant family but Theseus couldn’t look them in

the eye out of shame. They paid their condolences and he gave

them the amulet.

‘W-What? How did you get this?’ Lyria asked with a confus-

ingly worried face. ‘What do you mean? I got it from an elderly

woman your husband and I saved on our way to the cave, as a

reward. Why are you asking?’ He responded. ‘Well, it is beau-

tiful but I recognize it’ ‘Really? Who was she?’ ‘If I remember

correctly, she must belong to an incredibly wealthy family in a

nearby village. They are very famous slave traders, surely you

have heard of them.’ ‘Wait... What? Oh, no...’ He delved in deep

sadness as he had finally discovered what he had done.

He explained the situation with a weary voice, gave his farewell

and took off for his meeting. Shiraz stayed to speak and comfort

the grieving family.

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Author's note - I hope to get reviews and feedback. Thank you :)