All in the Family
By Sunraven
Ares:"By Hera's twat, I'm bored!"
My sister Aphrodite sashayed closer to me in that way she has that glues men's eyes to her body.
"Aww, what's the matter, Ar? This hasn't been the worst family reunion we've had to live through. I mean, that party Apollo had last night really rocked!"
I growled at her, and she cringed away for a second. I know, I know. It's like beating Bambi, but I just can't help it. I'm sick and tired of her, and all the other air-headed Olympians at this stupid family reunion Zeus forces us to come to every century.
"Do you want to...?"
"No! I want to go back to work, and leave this God-infested place for a few centuries." I lightened up on her then. It wasn't right to take my feelings out on her when she was just trying to help. So I tried to be nice. It isn't easy for the God of War to be nice.
"How about we slip out for a while, Sis, and go see the thirteen forbidden secrets of Babylon exhibit, eh?"
"Don't you ever get tired of that old thing, Ares?" Then she melted against me and smiled. Dite could really melt against a man, and I felt myself getting hard. "Sure, let's go. If it will cheer you up, I'll even play that slave-temptress role you've been wanting me to do."
"Great, let's go."
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Hellana:
I was walking towards the Athenian garrison that was north of Athens. My hopes were that they would accept me as a recruit there. Despite the bright sun shining down on me, and the lovely spring flowers on the side of the hills, I felt glum. I couldn't help going over and over that last conversation with my Mother Gahania yesterday in my mind.
"But why do you have to go now, Hellie? Surely sixteen years is still too young to travel by yourself. And to become a soldier? You're a healer, Hellana, not a fighter."
"Mother, I am too a fighter. Jerrod has taught me all he knows about the sword and the staff, and Selena just told me that I've gotten better than her in the dagger and bow."
"Hmmmph! A retired mercenary and a prostitute! I never did like you spending your time with them. And then rejecting that lovely Tarsius' suit like you did. He would have made a good match for you, with his herb shop."
I thought about Tarsius' rubbery lips on mine. How I finally had to twist his arm behind his back when he wouldn't stop trying to touch my breasts, and suppressed a shiver. Lovely, indeed. He was gross! It's not that I prized my virginity like a follower of Artemis or Athena, but when I lost it, which I hoped would be fairly soon, then it would be to someone who I liked a lot and who turned me on. Not to some disgusting lout like Tarsius just to get free herbs for my healing. I'd rather dig in Demeter's earth for them, it was cleaner somehow.
I sighed. Well, it had been a pain in the butt, but I was finally on the road to whatever my destiny would be.
A halo of light appeared in front of me, and I stopped. I knew the signs of a God teleporting in when I saw it. Having a father who's a God made sure of that.
Out of the light stepped my Father Hermes. I sighed again. Why couldn't parents just be good and leave their children be?
"Hermes." I knew that I sounded sullen, but I didn't care.
"Now is that any way to greet your Father, Daughter?"
I shrugged. "Why not? It's your name."
He frowned, then looked me up and down like I was today's lunch and he was hungry.
"What are you looking at?"
"You. You've grown into a beautiful woman since I've seen you last. Let me see, you'd be twenty-two now, wouldn't you?"
A twinge of hurt went through me. He didn't even know how old I was.
"I'm sixteen, Hermes, since you can't count very well. Just like my mother was when you seduced her."
"Whatever. Huh? You're only sixteen? You look older than that."
"What do you want, Hermes?"
"Well, I noticed that you're on your own now, and I thought I would give you another option to going to become a soldier with the Athenian army."
I didn't even ask how he knew that. Probably eavesdropping on us, I'd think. That was his style, and his second duty after being the Gods' messenger was the God of secrets, after all. "I want to be a soldier. There's nothing wrong with that, and I'm tired of having to justify it to everyone."
"I didn't say there was. But I thought that it's about time you met your Olympian relatives. Who knows, you may decide to fight for another God than Athena. And you really should get to know that side of it before you make such an important life decision. Your Grandfather Zeus organizes a family reunion every century that lasts for over a month. That's happening now on Mount Olympus. So they'll all be together for you to meet. How does that sound?"
I didn't really trust Hermes, but my heart sped up at the thought of meeting all of my Godly relatives. I had to admit that I've been curious about that side of my heritage for a long time now.
"Well, as long as you promise to take me to the garrison once it's over, then I guess I'll go." I didn't want him to know how excited I was, 'cause I was afraid that he'd withdraw his offer.
"Excellent!" He again looked me over critically. "Why don't you let me jazz up your clothes a bit so you fit in better?"
I looked down at my leathers and light armor. They were a little beat up from the road, but good quality. "I'll let you do your magic and clean them if you want. But they're good enough for the Athenian army, and good enough for a bunch of Gods, I think."
He looked at me again. "You know, it may be better this way after all. If you looked too attractive, then my sisters would get jealous and harass you something fierce!" And he smiled.
I definitely didn't like that smile at all. There was something predatory and, well, hungry about it.
"Let's just do it and cut the comments, okay?"
"Okay."
He waved his hands and I disappeared.
And appeared again puking my guts out on my father's winged golden sandals.
"Ewwww! What in the Tartarus?"
"I don't feel so good. It happened when you moved us."
Hermes waved his hand and cleaned us both up, then said briskly, "It's a good thing I didn't materialize among the crowd. You would have embarrassed both of us."
"Well, thanks loads for the sympathy, Pop, you're a real peach." That had definitely not improved my mood, which had been getting worse since Dear Old Dad had shown up. I was starting to have second thoughts about all this. The fact is, I was starting to fear that I was out of my league big time.
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Ares:
I was with Aphrodite, Discord, Hades, and Strife. And of course getting even more bored by their inane chatter, when Hermes brought his half-mortal daughter for all of us to meet.
"Down, boy." I murmured to Strife, whose interest I could tell was caught by the cute little thing presented to us. "Give her a chance to get comfortable first, then you can jump on her." She was a pretty little piece, with long red hair and a figure that made my sister glare at her with undisguised annoyance. But that wasn't what caught my interest. It was the way she was obviously so unaware of her attractions. And, even more interesting was that she was still a virgin. A woman walks differently when they haven't loved a man yet. Amazing that she still was, as attractive as she was. A painful elbow in my ribs made me look down at Aphrodite.
"Don't stare so much, Ares. You look like you've never seen a beautiful woman before."
I grinned at her, perfectly aware that she wanted a compliment and deciding not to give her what she wanted. "It is unusual to see one that pretty who is still untouched, Sis. You'll have to admit that."
"Untouched? How d'ya tell that she's a virgin, Unc?"
"Shhh, Strife. Keep it down, otherwise you'll scare her from coming over and talking to us. I'll clue you in later."
I suddenly wasn't bored any more. This woman's half-mortal vitality radiated from her, and lightened up the entire gloomy palace. We haven't had this much energy around this gloomy place since Zeus' byblow Hercules had come up for the first time. At last, something new!
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Hellana:
Hermes brought me to Zeus and Hera first. Zeus looked like a wise old Judiciar we had in our town, old Sylus. Only he was brighter, and somehow beautiful. He had a darkness about him, though, that I didn't understand, but was wary of. Hera was attractive, but in her the darkness was completely engulfing her spirit.
"Zeus, this is my Daughter by Gahania from North Athens. Her name's Hellana, and she's out in the world for the first time now. I thought I'd bring her up to meet the family, what with the reunion and all."
I bowed. "Uh, Gr.. uh, I'm not sure what I should call you. You don't seem like a Grandfather to me."
The ageless blue eyes sharpened on me. "I don't? What do I seem like?"
"I'm not sure. I guess like a King of the Gods?"
He laughed then, and Hera's face darkened. I turned to her, trying to think of something nice to say to that unhappy face. "And you look every inch a Queen, Hera, Ma'am. You're even more majestic than I had pictured you to be."
I could see her relax as she sensed the truthfulness of my words and decided to accept the compliment. I relaxed a bit myself then. Boy, what a bomb waiting to go off!
Zeus said loudly then, "Be welcome, Grandaughter, to Olympus, and know all that she is here under my protection!"
Hermes took me then to a group standing to the left of the thrones. There were two women, one very dark and one very blonde, and three men. And boy, what men they were. Except for the skinny pale one. I didn't like the way he was checking me out at all.
"Hellana, this is Aphrodite, Discord, Ares the God of War, Hades the God of the Underworld, and Strife."
I noticed how he named the titles of the people who were of higher rank, and left the other ones off. Very political of you, Daddio. I decided not to be political.
I looked at the Goddess of Love first. "So you're the Goddess of Love and Beauty. Your statues don't do you justice at all, Aphrodite. You're even more stunning in real life than I ever imagined." And I smiled at her. She preened a bit, but she, too, looked for the truth behind my words. I wasn't worried. I was telling the Gods-own truth. She was a really hot babe.
"You're not so bad yourself, Hellana." Then her blue eyes got wider, which I later learned was a sign that she was being shrewd. Dite could never play poker well, things showed all over her face. "I don't remember ever getting any petitions from you in my temples, though. Wasn't there ever anything you wanted from the Goddess of Love?"
Hmmm. I wasn't about to parade my lack of a love life in front of all these decadent centuries-old Gods, even if I could tell that Aphrodite knew about it for sure. "Well, there was this disgusting store owner once who just wouldn't leave me alone..." I grinned. "Once I twisted his arm and held my dagger to his throat, he finally let me be. I didn't think you would want to bother with getting rid of that pest."
The blue eyes flashed in recognition of a victory, and a tentative friendship was born between us. I liked this Goddess of Love. Underneath her beauty, she was a nice person. Who'd of figured it?
"So, by the way you're dressed, it appears that you're a warrior." The smooth baritone voice came from a man that I had noticed as soon as Hermes brought me into the room. Dressed all in black, he was dark-haired, dark-eyed, and dark-spirited. But underneath the darkness was a flash of brightness like the glass of a mirror shining in the sun. Sharp and bright. Way underneath. Like a bright steel sword covered with stained blood. And an overpowering loneliness, and boredom was there as well. All eyes turned to look at the bearer of that hypnotic voice.
Ares, the God of War.
By the Gods! I could feel my face turning red, and I cursed my fair skin to myself. But he was walking passion, was this God, and my female body responded without any control or wish on my part.
Damn it! I clamped down on my will power, ignored the heat in my face, and said, "You must be Ares. You'll know that I'm not really a warrior yet, of course. I've trained in the sword, dagger, bow, and staff. But I have no real experience. I was walking to join Athena's army when Hermes talked me into coming here. I'm also a healer, which always comes in handy in an army."
The barb about his rival Athena went home, and he bristled. It was kind of scary, actually. Those dark eyes of his pierced me like twin swords, and promised retribution because of this public humiliation.
Then Aphrodite laughed and took the dark God's arm playfully. "Now there, there, Ar. She's young yet. Maybe you can change her mind about joining Athena's army."
He let himself be soothed, but his eyes were sill boring a hole through me as he said, "I'll certainly have to try, won't I, Hellana?"
"I would enjoy the discussion, Uncle. As Aphrodite said, I'm still young, and am trying to find my destiny, if I have one." I put an emphasis on the Uncle part, but I will tell you, my body didn't see him as an Uncle at all. My body saw him as a mate, big time. I'd never felt this attracted to anyone in my life. And I'd never felt this wary of an attraction before, either.
He grinned at me then, but it reminded me more of the grin of a wolf before it jumped on a sheep. Not a very comforting feeling at all. "I look forward to it as well, Niece."
___
Ares:
Gods and Goddesses she's magnificent! I saw her face when I talked to her, and I could tell she wanted me, and was confused with the wanting. But she took control of herself, and still managed to put me in my place! Ahh, niece, you're out of your league this time, but I think I'll enjoy this battle immensely. And the victory even more!
"Hey Nephew, you seem lost in thought." Hades' eyes were laughing as he looked at me, for some reason. I didn't like that at all. "Pleasant ones, from the look of certain parts of you."
"My thoughts are mine alone, Hades. You overstep yourself."
He had the nerve to laugh out loud then. I put my hand on my sword without thinking, and he laughed even harder!
"You're asking for trouble, Uncle."
He slapped me on my shoulder and grinned. "Don't worry, Ares. We all felt how much she wanted you. I expect you'll score before Strife even gets to first horseshoe!"
"Oh, shut up! I don't have to take this."
I could hear his laughter as I left, damn him!
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Hellana:
Aphrodite let me sleep in a chamber in her temple. Gods don't need sleep, but I do. It was amazingly gaudy, all in reds and pinks. But after meeting Athena (boring and used big words to impress me), Apollo (a babe, too bad I don't like blondes), Poseidon (dripped all the time), Artemis (cool bow!), Fortune (ditsy), Dioneses (yech! Old drunk lech) and I don't know how many others, I slept like the dead. And dreamed of dark eyes boring into my soul.
I woke up the next morning to find Aphrodite looking down at me, a sunny smile on her face.
"Uh, hi. What're you doing here?"
She sat down on the bed and curled up like a cat, just looking at me. "You're mortal blood is so vibrant, I couldn't resist coming and taking a little peek at you while you sleep. You looked like you're just sixteen!"
I sat up. "That's good, I guess. Because I am sixteen."
Now she looked surprised. "You're only sixteen years old? You could have fooled me. Wait until the others find out!"
"Aphrodite, please don't tell them how young I am. I don't want anyone to know."
"I don't know, Hellana. It might keep some of the more, uh, rough Gods off of you if I tell them you're still a kid."
"I am not a kid! I've always been different, I've never fit in anywhere in Greece. But I've never been a child. So please don't treat me like one."
There was compassion in her eyes as she said, "Okay, it'll be our secret. Now, tell me what you think of us."
"You mean, the Gods?"
"Yah. Us. What's your impression of, say, Ares, me, Athena, Hera, you know!"
"Uh, well, I think you're really neat. I always expected the Goddess of Love to be an air-head with nothing but surface beauty. But even though you pretend you don't have a brain in your pretty head," I tugged on her golden curls with a smile. "I can see that you do have one. A very good brain."
She was serious when she answered, "You're right. You aren't a child, you're a witch! And call me Dite."
I grinned. "Ares, well, he's about the hottest man I've ever seen in my life. He looks at me, and my whole body reacts. If sex could walk, it would be him." I shook my head. "But I get a very strong feeling that he's really lonely, and bored with life. It must be really tough to be hated by almost everyone except warriors. And underneath all that big black War God stuff, I sense a really bright person, and maybe a bit of a decent man underneath that."
Her eyes were as big as saucers. "You got him in one. But few see that in him. Most just see what he wants them to see. The big black part."
"Do you want me to go on?"
"I'm not sure I can take it right now. Why don't I make us some breakfast instead?"
"You cook?"
She laughed. "No way. I don't do domestic. I'll just, you know, magic it up."
"Well, if you'll provide the stuff, I'm a pretty good cook. I'll be glad to cook breakfast for us."
She licked her lips. "Real food? Cool. What do you need?"
Cooking for a Goddess was neat. Everything appeared as I asked for it, then after the meal everything cleaned itself up.
Dite sat back and sighed. "By the Gods that was the best meal I've ever had!" Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me. "If I didn't know better, I'd say that you cooked like a God. Hellana, have your God-powers manifested yet?"
"If you mean what makes me different from the other people in Greece, yes they have. I found out early that I can touch anything and it won't harm me, no matter how poisonous. And from touching it, I can tell what it is. Even the stingray's stinger. I have an instinctual knowledge of herb lore, and I can cook better than anyone in our town. At least that's what my mom always said. Also, I'm stronger and more coordinated than most others, even though I'm not very big." I'm only five feet tall in socks.
"Hmm. Cooking, healing, immunity to poisons, herb lore. Yah, I'd say that's how your God powers manifested. Do you mind if I set up a dinner party while you're here? Everyone should get a taste of your cooking. You might as well take advantage of the gift."
"Uh, won't it be a lot of work?"
"Hey, I'm a Goddess. I'll take care of everything except the actual cooking. I'll leave that up to you."
"No cleaning up after? Great, you're on, then."
Later I was just wandering around the palace looking at the statues, and snooping, of course. I'm a natural born snoop. I was in a rather dark corridor in the back of the palace when that God who had stared so rudely at me, Strife, appeared like a spider coming down a webstring.
"Oh! You startled me, Strife, isn't it?"
"Yah, it's Strife. Hey, you remembered my name!"
I decided to be frank with him. "That's because you were staring so rudely at me yesterday that it stuck in my mind. But not in a very pleasant way, I'm afraid. I don't like being gaped at." I had walked around him and was moving out into a better lit corridor by then. He scurried to follow.
"Hey, Hellana, I'm sorry if I was rude. I didn't mean to be, ya know. It's just..."
I turned and asked, "Just what, Strife?"
Now he was blushing, which looked odd against the black of his outfit. "Well, you're such a fine babe, and I was kind of struck speechless."
I have to admit that I was melting towards him. He was pretty nervous, but he seemed like an okay guy, for a God, that is. "It's okay, I guess. Just remember that staring too openly makes a woman uncomfortable, okay?"
He grinned. "Okay. I was wondering, uh, would you like to go to bed with me?"
At first I was struck completely speechless. Then I had to fight not to laugh at this socially inept God. But I did have to stop him in his tracks on this, or he would be bothering me the entire time I was here.
"Look, Strife, I think you're cute and everything. Only, I don't think you're my type at all. So do you mind not asking me that again? Because the answer is no now, and will be no again."
"I blew it, didn't I?"
He looked so sheepish that I had to feel sorry for him. I put my hand on his shoulder and said, "Well, you were maybe a little presumptuous. And you aren't supposed to come out and just ask a woman that with no warning, you know. Look, maybe you might want to check with Ares or Zeus, and they can give you tips on ways to approach women. From their reputations, they seem to be quite knowledgeable on the subject."
"Yah, maybe I'll do that. Thanks, Cousin!"
"You're welcome, Cousin." He left to find someone to give him some advice. As I turned to walk down the corridor, I found Ares there with me. He stood close, just looking at me with a little smile on his face.
"Oh! Ares, damn, you startled me!"
"You handled him quite gently, you know that?"
"You were watching?"
He shrugged. He had a wonderful shrug, and I watched in appreciation as muscles rippled when he did it. "At the end. I'd come to find you for our discussion."
"Well, there was no need to hurt him by laughing at him. I mean, if he had been intentionally rude, or threatened me or something, I would have been then. But he's just, uh,"
"Totally socially inadequate?"
"Yes, the poor guy. He is."
Ares moved a little closer to me. Close enough for me to smell the male musky odor and to feel the heat coming off of him. "He's only saying what a lot of us are feeling, you know."
I could feel my treacherous face heat up. "Uh, how do I... I don't quite know what to say to that. Except to point out that the lot of you are just bored, and I'm a new face, and as such, a novelty. Is it that boring to live forever?" Were there points of light deep in those brown eyes?
He continued to stare at me, but I could feel his surprise at my question. "Uh, well, once you've done everything many times, then novelty has a lot of power. But you don't give yourself credit, Hellana. You're a beautiful, desirable woman."
"Is this how you talk all the women around you into your bed, Ares? You've got quite a reputation among mortals, you know, for being a lady's man."
Now he was annoyed. "I'm not a bug to be dissected, young woman! I'm the God of War."
I smiled. "I'm sorry. Now it's me that's being socially inept. I wasn't dissecting you. My mother always did say that I ask too many questions."
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Ares:
By the Gods this young woman is impertinent! Most women would be spreading their legs on the floor at my feet, or dragging me off to a bed by now. Hmm. Maybe what Artemis always says about virginity giving a woman power to resist men is true. I know she's attracted to me. I can feel the blood rushing down in her body now, and there's the blushing. I can't figure this lady out. I'll just have to try harder, that's all. Damn, my Gods-be-damned cock is bent inside my pants! Stupid thing, getting like that just by talking to her! You'd think I had the control, or lack of it, that Strife has from the way it's reacting.
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Hellana:
Why's he fidgeting like that? He looks like something's too tight. Of course, those pants looked painted on him. I guess I shouldn't comment on the fact that that bulge in his crotch looks way too big for those pants. I could feel the heat come into my face again as I noticed that he was getting hard. I may not have had a lover yet, but I'm an avid reader. And I recognize a man getting a hard-on when I see it. Damn, but it's making me wet as hell between my legs. He obviously wants to bed me. And I want him too. But he's the God of War, Hellie! Don't be a fool. You're just a distraction to ease his boredom. So I started walking again, mostly to get him further away from me physically.
"Ares, you said you wanted to speak with me about my choice of God to serve. Are you and your sister Athena really rivals in war?"
He frowned at me then, but I could see he wasn't really mad at my impertinence. In fact, those dark eyes were laughing at me. I don't like being laughed at, so I blurted out, "I don't see how the two of you can be rivals, really. I mean you and she have such different styles of leading. The Athenians are methodical, organized, well trained, and their battles are well planned. Your followers are usually less organized, more passionate about their wars, utterly ruthless, and a bit undisciplined."
"The Spartans are mine, and they're anything but undisciplined. How dare you talk about my armies as though you know what you're talking about? You disrespectful child! I should turn you over my knee and spank you for your sassy mouth!"
He wasn't kidding this time! At least, since he was growling at me, I didn't think he was kidding. He was really angry. But that comment about spanking me pissed me off, too! How rude and sexist! And I could see him getting even more turned on by the thought of spanking me. Cretan!
"Look, I may not have battle experience, but I can read, and I have a brain! I'm just asking about what I've observed from the analyses of the battles you and Athena have had your followers fight. I thought that you waylaid me like you did in order to talk about why I chose the Athenians over your armies. Or was it just to try to seduce me to your bed and add me to your list of conquered woman?" I tried to sneer, but he was really too scary for me to pull it off well.
He laughed at me then, a deep vibrato of a laugh that stirred something deep inside my belly. His smile transformed his face into the most beautiful one I had ever seen.
"You give yourself too much credit, little girl. If I want someone to bed, I'll go after a real woman, not a child-virgin who's pretending to be one! You wouldn't have a clue what to do with a man's cock if it jumped up and bit you! Maybe I should teach you a lesson in respect!"
Then he grabbed me, picked me up, and kissed me. His lips sure weren't rubbery! They were warm, and hard, and his tongue forced its way into my mouth with a ruthlessness that left no room for protest. He enveloped me in a bear hug, and despite my growing arousal I was starting to feel trapped.
Then he just as abruptly let me go, and I fell back to my feet with a thump that shook my bones.
"I will not allow you to make me lose control, Hellana! I hadn't pegged you for the nasty type of woman who just tries to bait men and make them angry."
"I'm not that type of woman, Ares! I genuinely want to know about the difference in your two philosophies. I didn't say one way was better than the other. And I didn't say it to make you mad, either! You didn't have to kiss me in that... that mean way, either!"
He grinned, suddenly in a good mood again. "You're right. I should have been gentler. There's a bench over there." He pointed to a nook in the wall, where a bench was hidden behind some potted plants. "Come on, little warrior. Let's sit there and I'll try to answer your questions without getting annoyed at you.
I was more than a little wary of going into a secluded corner with him. But I wasn't about to show it, or to back down, either. I wanted my questions answered by the God of War, and I was going to pester him until he answered them, damn it!
After we sat, he looked at his rings on his left hand and said, "You're right about us having different philosophies. My sister feels that no emotions should interfere with the battle process."
I nodded. "I picked up that Athena feels very strongly about being in control at all times when I met her. It would probably be distasteful for her to lose it."
He glanced at me, surprised, I think, by the insight. "You're absolutely right. That's why she stays a virgin. Because she wouldn't like what would happen if she actually got excited by a lover and let herself go."
"Well, someone with as much male energy as, say, you or Apollo, would disturb the peace of mind of even the most determined of virgins. I can definitely see her point." I answered ruefully. He had sure disturbed me.
"Is that why you want to follow her? Because you prefer to remain virgin, and in control?"
I blushed. "No, it isn't that. I just figured that I could learn a lot from the Athenians. They're very well trained."
"My people are well trained too."
"I expect that they are. Is that what you believe, Ares, that passion belongs in war?"
His eyes had gone somewhere else as he considered his answer. "I don't mind wars being fought for passionless reasons, I guess. But when the blood is fired from anger, or fear, or a desire to defend a home, then war has real meaning. It seems a waste to fight for logical reasons only."
"Why, you're a philosopher!"
"No, I'm a warrior. But that doesn't mean that I have a brain like a sheep. Not all warriors do, you know. That's what Athena thinks of the warriors who follow me. That we think with our little heads instead of our big ones." He grinned wickedly. "We do, of course. Most men do. But not all the time."
"It must be tiring, though, to have to put up with everyone hating you because you represent the more bloody sides of war. Not to mention lonely. I mean, there's so much more to you inside, but the evil war part hides that. Or overwhelms it, maybe." I said quietly.
His head came up like he'd been hit. But he didn't get mad. He just looked at me, no, through me, with those beautiful brown eyes. "Aphrodite did say that she thought you were a witch. Tell me, my lovely green-eyed witch, what do you see inside me other than War?"
I blushed for no reason this time, but went on. "I see loneliness. Not from a lack of lovers or sycophants, or anything like that. But because there is no one who you can take off the War mask with, and just be Ares. And boredom. You've done everything, and now very little holds any interest for you any more. Living so long has taken your ability to feel strongly about anything from you. You're a secret philosopher, and a deep thinker as well. Deep inside here, Ares," I touched his vest over his heart, "You doubt yourself and your strength. You don't need to, you know. You've got strength where you least expect it."
"By the Gods, Aphrodite was right! You are a witch. Little warrior, I'd like to kiss you again, and show you that I can kiss in a nice, not mean way."
"Uh, I'm not sure, oh, to hell with it. I'd love you to kiss me again!"
He did then. This time he held me tightly, but not in a constricting way. And he was putting all of his considerable experience at love into it, I could tell. I knew it because my body went totally out of my control, and reached for his with an urge that was indescribable.
___
When he finally separated from me, I just sat back and said, "Wow." Of course I felt really stupid and childish after saying it.
He grinned, then got up from the bench.
"What? You're leaving?"
With his hardness bulging right in front of my eyes, he said, "I'm going to go do some things that need doing. Bring your sword out into the courtyard at two o'clock this afternoon, and I'll look at your technique. Bye." And he turned and sauntered away, well aware that I was watching his nice backside as he went.
-------------------------------------------
Ares:
I can't believe she made me lose control like that! But I didn't want to start her education on loving by moving too fast and scaring her. This one is special, there's something about her, I don't know what it is. Well aware of her eyes on me, I waited until I was out of her sight before I collapsed against the wall. I reached in and straightened out my dick, and breathed a sigh of relief. It had been getting really uncomfortable in there. Not to mention that I was horny as hell. I stroked it through the leather, and sure enough it only took a few strokes before I came like a volcano erupting. I had wanted to turn her on, and had turned myself on even more.
Doing it myself is the pitts. I think I'll go find Aphrodite or Strife, and coax them into some heavy loving. That will get it out of my system before I have to deal with her again. She won't catch me like that in the future!
I walked in the direction of where the other Gods hung out. My mind kept going over what had happened with Hellana, and I thought about what I'd do with her if she swore her service to me. It didn't sound like she was overly committed to Athena. That's a good thing, really. Athena always tries to get her women to stay virgin, and that would be a terrible waste.
Hellana's strong. And she'll be a natural with weapons since she has Olympian blood in her. But I think that she won't be ruthless enough to be a warlord in her own right. She doesn't have that cold focus that a warlord needs to be great. Not like that warrior princess I've been watching, Xena. Now that woman is a great leader, and could become the one who will unite Greece under my domain. Now, if I can talk Hellana into pledging to me, I might be able to toughen her to the point where I can pair her with one of my more presentable warlords. Flavius, for one, or Orakis up in the Ossian alps. He has the potential to be great, but hasn't shown the ruthlessness to do it. Perhaps having a woman like Hellana behind him would put steel in his balls. Tartarus, she'd put steel into the balls of a sheep! She has that way of making a man feel like he's the best in all of Greece. She sure did it to me, and without half trying. But I'll have to teach her how to be a warrior. And how to pleasure a man in bed. I can't have anyone ruining her by being too rough or anything. Once she's learned those skills, with her healing abilities and how she sees into a person's heart through all the masks, she'll make a powerful support force.
I had forgotten all about Dite and Strife in my preoccupation with Hermes' daughter. Instead I moved over to a balcony that overlooked all of Greece, and the vision of Hellana making love to Orakis came into my mind. Suddenly a berzerker rage gripped me that was stronger than even that time Zeus told me he was ashamed of me being his son.
/No! He can't have her. She's mine!/
I fought it down until I came to my senses again. Breathing heavily, I glanced down at my hands. Damn, I put finger marks in the balcony marble! Hera will kill me if she notices. Oh, well.
"Dite! Come to me!"
She appeared a few seconds later. "What is it? You sound upset."
"I want you to fuck my brains out, Love Goddess, until my cock's as limp as a dishrag, and won't get hard again for a while. And you have two hours to do it in!"
She grinned. "Well, that certainly is a challenge, Ar. Let's go!"
-----------------------------------
Hellana:
It took me a while to settle down after he left. Boy, what a kiss! I sighed, then continued my wanderings.
I was in an older, darker part of the palace when I felt a burst of heat come out a doorway. At the same time the smell of a forge hit me, and I turned in to find the source.
A large man was leaning over the forge, using a goldsmith's hammer to shape a piece of gold. His left arm and face were scarred with horrible burn marks. As soon as I walked through the doorway he straightened up and glared at me.
"Go away!"
I ignored him, and walked in instead. Loneliness radiated from him, and bitterness as well.
"You're Hephaestus, the God of Fire!"
"Yah, so what? You're disturbing my work."
"But I've been admiring your work here in the palace. You're so incredibly talented! My stepfather was a smith, and he prayed to you all the time until he died."
"Who was he?"
"Derane of North Athena. He was a weaponsmith."
The brown eyes so like his God of War brother's considered me solemnly. "I remember him. What did he die of?"
"A fever after he cut himself on a rusty blade. His jaw locked up, and I couldn't save him."
"You're a healer?"
"Yes. But not much of one, not then at least." I came up to him, putting out my hand in greeting. "I'm Hellana, Hermes daughter. My father brought me here to introduce me to my relatives before I join the Athenian army."
He just looked at my hand, and mumbled that his hands were dirty.
"May I please watch you work? I learned a bit about smithing from my Dad, so I won't be too confused, I think. I won't make any noise or bother you, I promise."
He mumbled his assent with a blush, and went back to the gold piece. It was a filigreed net of gold with tiny rubies and diamonds interwoven in it like bright stars in a golden night. It glittered with a delicate supernatural beauty, almost a thing alive in it's own right.
"By the Gods, this is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen! It was truly wrought by the God of Fire, Hephaestus. What's it going to be?"
He blushed even redder, but I could see he enjoyed the praise. He took it up and brought it over to me, bringing it up to my bare neck above my breast armor. Then he held it against me. It was like a spider web in weight, and covered my upper chest like intricate gold and jeweled armor. But this armor made my own expensive stuff look like junk.
"It's going to be armor?"
"No. But it's going to look like it, to cover a woman's lovely throat and upper breasts."
I touched the piece reverently. "The lady you give this to will be a very lucky woman."
He stiffened, then demanded, "Are you making fun of me?"
/What?/ "No. I meant it. Why are you so sensitive? What earthly reason would I have to make fun of you, Hephaestus?"
He turned away, back to his beloved forge. "No one's ever needed a reason before."
I walked around and placed myself between him and his forge so that he had to look at me. "Well I'm not just anyone. I'm the daughter of a God and the stepdaughter of a smith. You'll have my honor and admiration until the day I go to the other side. Someone who creates the beauty that you bring into this world deserves nothing less."
Eyes that contained the fires he worked with on a daily basis stared at me, reading the truth behind my words as only a God could do. Then he took the necklace up again, waved his hand to add a delicate gold clasp and chain, and placed it on my neck gently.
"It's yours. Keep it."
His hot hands rested lightly on my upper chest when he'd finished closing the clasp and smoothing the necklace into place. I felt a surge of arousal at the touch, coming from both him and my own body. It was different from what I had felt with Ares. Ares had reacted to me against his will. And he had deliberately aroused me for who knows what reason. But Hephaestus reacted with the intensity of a man who hadn't had a woman in a very long time. And I responded in kind because I found him unbelievably sexy.
"But, Hephaestus, it's too beautiful to give to me. A Goddess should wear this. It's wasted on a mortal like me."
He grabbed my arms and glared at me. "You are a lovely woman, and that bauble doesn't do your beauty justice. You have the face and body of a Goddess. Don't put yourself down!"
"Thank you so much. Coming from you, a creator of such objects that can only stir the imagination, that means more than I can say." I got onto my tiptoes and kissed him lightly on the lips.
"I don't repulse you?" He sounded so confused.
"No. Of course not. Why would you repulse me?"
"Because of these!" and he gestured towards his scars.
I looked at them then, and reached my hands up and touched the gnarled flesh lightly. He flinched.
"Does it hurt you?"
"No. It... tickles."
"Were you born with these?"
He looked surprised then. "Yes. They're the mark of my talents with fire. And they're a curse!"
I looked at his face. He was almost as handsome as Ares, but was quiet and shy, where the War God was aggressive and manipulative. "Well, I think they make you look rakish, like you could be a pirate or something."
Hephaestus threw back his head and laughed then. And the beauty that he constantly created was suddenly mirrored in his smiling face.
"You are something else, you know that?"
"No, you're something else, God of Fire."
"I see the face and body of a Goddess in you, but when I look in your eyes, I see one who has barely left childhood. How old are you?"
"Does it matter? I'm old enough to appreciate beauty when I see it, in a work of art or in the spirit of a man."
"Yes, it does matter!" He said sternly. "How old are you?"
I sighed. "I'm sixteen, if you must know!"
He took my face in his fire-knicked hand. "So young? You have your whole life ahead of you."
Right then we were interrupted by someone clearing his throat behind us. We swung around, and Ares, with the War Sword sheathed on his hip, walked towards us.
"Ares. You rarely come to my forge." Hephaestus' tone wasn't very friendly to his brother.
"I didn't come to see you, Hephaestus." He looked at me then, anger smoldering in his dark eyes. And was it hurt I saw there as well? "We were supposed to do sword training. You made me wait." His tone implied that no one kept the God of War waiting and lived to tell about it.
Ignoring his tone, I hit my forehead. "By the Gods, what time is it?"
"It's after two."
"Oh, Ares, I'm so sorry! I was wandering, and I came across Hephaestus, here, and my stepfather was a blacksmith, and we got to talking, and I lost track of time."
I came up to him then with a smile, hoping to soothe his anger. "Is it too late for my lesson?"
His eyes focused on my chest, but for a change he wasn't looking at my breasts.
He was looking at Hephaestus' necklace.
His face got unnaturally still, as though he was a beautiful statue, and he spoke over my head to the God of Fire in a voice that sent shivers up my spine. "You dare put your mark on what is mine, brother? As though it would be accepted from such as you." The rage in his eyes made him almost blaze with an evil red fire.
My mouth fell a bit open in shock at his words. What is his? How dare he!
Hephaestus voice came from behind me, and it wasn't in a placating tone at all. "She admired my work. I gave it to her. Read what you will in it, I don't care." And he turned away towards his fire. I glanced over at him, and I could see the anger in him denoted by his rigid stance and clasped fists.
Well that did it. I was so angry at being considered a possession by this horrible God that I totally lost it. I pushed with all of my strength, and the God of War fell back, landing on his shapely derriere in the forge dirt.
"How dare you! How dare you come in here flashing that damn sword of yours, call me your property, and then insult this sweet man for being kind to me? Who do you think you are, you, you damned War God!" I took a breath, then continued. "I think you're arrogant and, and horrible! You stay away from me from now on, you hear me Ares?"
I ran from the room, just heading off into the palace maze to get away from them. I heard Hephaestus calling behind me, but I didn't want to see him either.
I was so embarrassed that I wanted to die.
___
I wandered the corridors of the palace until I finally came upon a reclining couch. I sat on it among a billow of dust, and just held myself quietly.
I can't believe he actually thinks I'm his property! After spending only one hour together and two kisses, he thinks he owns me. And I remembered Hephaestus' anger, and the hurt from Ares' insult, and I got even angrier.
Then I looked up and saw Him standing a few feet in front of me. He was looking down on me, his face statue-still again, and frowning.
"Go away, Ares. I don't want to talk to you." I suddenly felt tired. Very, very tired of these god-awful relatives of mine.
He didn't say anything. With no warning he moved with that quick panther's grace, plucked me from the couch, and pulled me to his body. He put his lips on mine, forcing my mouth open with his tongue. Then he kissed me with such fierce violence that he half strangled me. I choked, but he didn't let up.
He pushed me back on the couch and fell on top of me. I couldn't breathe from the weight of him, and I started bucking, desperate to get him off. But he held me relentlessly down, and I could barely move. With the other hand he started ripping open my pants. I finally realized for the first time that this crazy God was going to rape me.
Terror overwhelming sense, I threw my weight into my right hip and bucked at the same time. Ares went flying off the couch and landed on all fours on the floor.
"Ares, no, don't do this!"
He got back up, stalked back to me with his hands out ready to grab me again, and growled, "You're mine! And I'll take you so that all men and the Gods will know it!"
With a grunt of effort, I came up from a crouch and knocked him back a few feet with a body block.
"I don't belong to you or to anyone!"
This time he threw himself on me, and his weight forced us back down on the couch. He held me down by my throat with one hand, again fumbling with my laces with the other.
I screamed, and he clamped down on my throat even tighter to cut it off. My laces were torn open by now, and he ripped his own open next. He took out his penis, and my fear worsened. He was huge! It pulsed there, red and threatening and the size of a stallion's cock. He started pulling down my trousers, and I could do nothing. Absolutely nothing against his Godly strength.
Suddenly a bellow of rage sounded behind us, and I saw hands grab Ares. His stranglehold eased as his hands were ripped from my throat. Hephaestus, with the strength of centuries of smithing in his muscles, picked his half-brother up like he was a fly and threw him across the chamber.
The God of War hit the wall with a loud crack, and the floor of Olympus shook with the force of the throw.
I flung myself into Hephaestus' arms, sobbing with fear.
He pulled me close and said in his lovely deep voice, "There, there, he's gone. I won't let him hurt you any more."
Right then the whole blooming pantheon showed up to find out what the shaking was all about. Zeus saw what was going on immediately, and went to grab Ares before he flung himself on Hephaestus.
"No, son, don't do it. You've done enough for today."
My father Hermes, seeing the red welts on my neck, the torn lacings, and my sobbing face, turned towards Ares. He came up to him, a sword appeared in his hand, and he said, "I'll kill you, you black bastard!"
Dite came to Hephaestus and I, and took me from the God of Fire into her arms. She stroked my hair over and over, saying, "It's okay, baby, no one will hurt you. You're safe."
Zeus came up and sat down on the couch next to us. He reached out to the welts on my neck, and suddenly there wasn't any pain any more. Then he stroked my hair gently, and said, "Tell us what happened, Hellana."
I snuggled deeper into Dite's arms, and looked up at my Grandfather. "I was with Hephaestus watching him work and talking. He gave me this because I liked it so much." I pointed to the necklace. "Then Ares came in the forge because I had forgotten about our sword lesson, and he said I was his, and he insulted Hephaestus. I got mad and pushed him down and ran. He followed me, th... then he jumped on me, said he would take me so that all men and Gods would know I was his, then he... he started to rape me. Hephaestus grabbed him off me and threw him across the room, and then you came."
"But Ares didn't penetrate you, child?"
I could feel my face heat up. "No, Sir." I thought about the God of War's thick red cock coming at me. I buried my face in Dite's sweet-smelling hair to get rid of the image.
Zeus turned to Ares and a very angry Hermes. "Because you didn't succeed in your brutality, Ares, you won't lose your life or your Godhood."
Ares sneered. "Yah, you old hippocrite! How many women have you raped in your life, eh?"
Zeus suddenly got bigger, and he glowed. "She was here under my protection, animal, and you tried to violate her despite that. You will take your punishment and be silent!"
Then Zeus waved his hand, and Ares disappeared.
"Dite, take me to my room, please?"
"Okay, love." And she did.
I slept for ten hours. Twice I woke up with nightmares of being raped. Both times the Goddess of Love was right there, and she held me and soothed me back into sleep.
When I woke up finally, I felt a lot better, both emotionally and mentally. Dite appeared then, and I smiled up at her pretty and worried face.
"Thank you so much for being so nice to me, Dite. I feel a lot better now."
She came and sat on the bed. "No woman should be introduced to loving the way Ares tried to do with you, love. The only thing I can say in my brother's defense is that he's absolutely nuts about you. I've never seen him like he's been since he met you. Unfortunately he is the God of War, and seeing that beautiful necklace of Heph's on you was too much for him. I've seen him nuts before, but never like this with a woman he wanted."
I touched the necklace on my neck. "Hephaestus! By the Gods, he must be worried sick about me!"
She smiled then, and stroked my face. "He has been hovering more than usual. Do you want to see him?"
I glanced down at the pink diaphanous nightie I wore. "In this?"
She giggled, and waved her hand. I suddenly was wearing my own leathers again.
"Is that better for your modesty?"
"Uh, could you make me something a bit prettier, but more covering than that nightie?"
Her blue eyes twinkled. "So it's like that, huh? Sure, honey, how's this?"
She now had me in a low-cut tight robe-like dress the color of emeralds. "There, now let me just do your hair..." Another wave, and I felt my long hair come out of the braids, and curl up. She showed me a mirror, and I couldn't believe how I looked.
"Wow, I look..."
"I think stunning is the word you want."
"Would you get him, please, Dite?"
"Sure." And she disappeared.
Hephaestus appeared soon after that, a blush on his face. He came over to the bed and said gruffly, "I wanted to see how you were."
I patted the bed beside me, and he moved over and sat down.
"Hephaestus, I want to thank you for your help yesterday. I don't even like to think what would have happened if you hadn't come and did what you did."
He looked away, blushing even more. "No woman should have to be introduced to loving the way he tried."
I smiled. "That's exactly what Dite said." Then my smile dropped from my face. I knew, now, what I wanted and needed to do. "Hephaestus, would you be the one to show me what it's like to love a man?"
His brown eyes shot over to mine in surprise. "But you're so young."
"I'm old enough to know that I want you more than I've ever wanted anything in my life. You are so incredibly strong and sexy..."
He got up and walked over to the other side of the room. "You don't have to show your gratitude this way!"
I got off the bed, went over to him, and pulled him around to face me. "It isn't gratitude. I like you a lot, and I want you to make love to me. I want you to be my first lover, Hephaestus. I know you'll be gentle." And I pulled him down to me and kissed the Tartarus out of him. Almost of their own volition his arms came around me and held me to him tightly. I could feel his excitement in his shivering body and the hardening bulge rubbing against my stomach.
When I finished the kiss, I took his hand and led him to the bed. Then I started undressing him, slowly. Once his vest was off, I kissed each hard nipple, licked them until he groaned deep in his throat. I untied his laces and pulled his hard cock out of his pants.
It was easily as big as Ares' was, and was red and engorged in the same way. But I wasn't afraid this time. I touched the head of it with my finger, and he gasped.
I looked up into his beautiful warm eyes. "You're so big, it will hurt me, won't it?"
He stroked my hair, then waved his hand and our clothes disappeared. All but his necklace, which he left on me.
"Yes, at first when I pierce your maidenhead. But if I prepare you well, and go slow, then the pain will be over fast. Hellana, are you sure you want to do this? You can't go back after, you know that."
I could tell how hard it was for him to ask that. He wanted me badly with the strength of affection and long abstinence.
"Yes, I'm sure." And I kissed him again.
After that the God of Fire showed me what he was made of. He pushed me gently down onto the bed and kissed me deeply. His tongue moved down my throat, over the necklace, and to my left breast. When he touched my nipple with his tongue, I gasped and pushed it into his mouth. He sucked lightly on it, and I started creaming between my legs big time in my excitement. He moved to the other breast and did the same thing, and I was moaning by then.
When he moved down between my legs, they opened for him eagerly. That wicked tongue touched me in my most sensitive areas, and I screamed with pleasure as my entire body caught fire suddenly. Then Hephaestus moved so his erection was poised at my opening and waved so that oil was covering it.
"Please, I want it, I want you, Hephaestus."
He pierced me then, and the pain was so fierce that I wimpered. But he didn't pull out. Instead he started moving inside me more quickly, and pain turned into exquisite pleasure as my body stretched to match him. He pounded into me, and soon I found myself moving in the same rhythm, the pain but a memory. Then his finger moved between us and he lightly touched me somewhere down there, and I exploded into that glorious fire again. My body shaking was too much for him, and he came as well, spilling his warm seed into me.
He slipped out reluctantly, waved to take away any residual ache, and collapsed next to me.
I moved into his arms and snuggled into his neck. "Thank you so much for that, my God of Fire."
He kissed my forehead with a smile. "It was my pleasure, little lady."
I smiled and sat up, pulling him up with me. "Come on, I want to do it again. But this time I want to try to please you more."
He was hard again. I'm not even sure that he had softened at all. I looked at his cock, and saw the blood on it from my maidenhead tearing. I touched it, then lightly ran a finger down it. It felt hard, but not like wood or stone. More like the skin of a sausage. I ran my finger around the foreskin, then peeked at his face to see if that gave him pleasure. It did, so I continued to play with it for a while. He moaned as I clasped my hand around it and started stroking it, and I smiled. Then I bent down and licked it, tasting salt and the sharp copper taste of blood. I licked it some more, then took the head into my mouth.
He said abruptly, "Here, like this!" and he took my hand and clasped my fingers around the shaft tightly. Then he moved my hand in an up and down motion, while I still kept sucking the head at the same time. Feeling the rhythm, I pushed his guiding hand away and did it myself. In a few minutes I was rewarded by his shout, and he came, shooting warm liquid goo into my mouth in powerful surges. It tasted sweet, yet a bit salty too.
He moved up to me then, and entered me. I was so sensitive that I came immediately, crying out with the strength of my feelings. He thrust into me with enough power to lift me off of the bed, and with each stroke I groaned, feeling greater pleasure.
Much afterwards, I snuggled up to him and fell asleep in his arms. As I was falling asleep, I heard through drowsy ears his whisper. "Sleep well, little love, and fear not the deep dark night. For your God is here and watching over you."
I slept with a smile on my face, safe in my lover's strong arms. But in my dreams, another lover smiles down on me. My God of War lover.
---------------------------------
Ares:
Damn, I hate the punishment room! As I paced the small area, I felt my rage gather like a storm cloud. What in all Tartarus did I think I was doing, to go after that mongrel slut like that? I knew she was under Zeus' protection, and what he'd do to me if I violated it.
The white featureless walls of my prison stared back at me. Four years! Four frigging years in this place! That cursed bitch, Hellana! She was mine! I shouldn't have had to force her. She should have fallen into my arms. It's all her fault!
I sat on the white floor, moving my sword so I could be more comfortable. Where did I go wrong with this?
I closed my eyes, to better recall what happened. But the only thing I saw in my mind was my brother touching her face, his necklace caressing her neck and breasts. Her white thighs when I ripped her pants off, and that bush of curly red hair. My dick hardens just thinking of it, and I impatiently jerk off. I'm going to have to get used to doing that. Again.
Her fear fed my lust, and my self-disgust as well. How was it that this half mortal child-woman could drive me, the God of War, completely out of control? What is this emptiness because I won't be seeing that smile shining into my soul again?
Damn it! I'll get her back for this someday. I will make her beg me to take her.
One day.
