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Acheron pushed past ed by offers and invitations Even once he&039;d replaced his cowl, people didn&039;t stop calling out and pursuing hih the street

I hurried after him

"Don&039;t be like that," a man said as he trailed behind Acheron "I would make you a most beneficial mentor"

"I have no need of a rabbed hihly "What do you want?"

"I want to be left alone"

The man lowered Acheron&039;s cowl "Tellto have you"

That hollow, empty stare came into Acheron&039;s eyes as he shoved the man away from him

"What is this?"

My blood went cold as I recognized the hostile, de voice of my father I&039;d been so intent on Acheron and the unknown e were traveling past

Now Father&039;s full attention was riveted on Acheron whose face had turned to stone

Father roughly snatched the cowl back over Acheron&039;s head and shoved hiuards ere ordered to take him into custody Acheron was escorted back to the palace where Father had hiate the punished Acheron into the courtyard outside my father&039;s throne roouards stripped Acheron bare and delivered sixty-five strokes to his back I couldn&039;t watch, but I heard every whistle of the whip as it traveled through the air and every lash that cut through his flesh

Acheron would grunt and several tiuards to ain Never once did he cry out

When it was finally over, I turned to see Acheron leaning against the post, bleeding, his hands still securely tied The guards threw a coarse blanket over hied back to his room and locked inside

All I could do was hold Acheron afterward For once, he didn&039;t turn me away He lay with his head in my lap as he used to do ere children When he would beg me to tell him why his parents hated hied back

No one did

It was only later that I learned Father had forbidden it So I sat with Acheron for hours, holding his head as he quietly wept fro wounds of his back or the deeper ache in his heart, I didn&039;t know Gods, hoanted to take him back to that day in the orchard when it&039;d been just the three of us playing and laughing Away to some place where he could be free and lackadaisical, where he&039;d be a normal boy of nineteen as he should have been

When he finally fell to sleep, I continued to brush ed welts on his back I couldn&039;t iine a pain so severe

"I love you, Acheron," I whispered, wishing h to spare him from this

Deceain of the fact I knew Acheron continued to slip out of the palace to go to plays Many days I followed him just to make sure no one bothered him That no one knehat it was he did

He kept to the shadows, his identity and beauty carefully guarded His head was always hung low, his gaze on the ground as he passed through the unsuspecting crowds

Acheron risked o We both knew it I&039;d asked him once why he dared so much and he&039;d told me simply that it was all that comforted him

He liked to watch the characters in the plays Liked to pretend he was one of theht joy to his life?

As my union with Apollo drew critically near, I spent more and more time in Acheron&039;s chaicalwith relish and enthusias whored Only Father sahoredom as noble and wonderful

"Will it hurt much when he takes me?" I asked Acheron as we sat on his balcony that overlooked the sea below

I was on the ground while Acheron sat up on the banister as he always did He balanced precariously over the edge of it which dropped down to the raging sea

I was terrified of heights, but he seeer

"It depends on Apollo and his mood It always depends on your lovers and howyou pain"

That didn&039;t comfort me since I couldn&039;t control someone else&039;s mood "Was it painful your first time?"

He nodded subtly, his eyes blank "At least you won&039;t have an audience when he violates you"

"Did you?"

He didn&039;t answer, but then he didn&039;t have to His expression toldfor him and the horror hein my hands "Do you think Apollo will hurt me?"

"I don&039;t know, Ryssa" His tone showed his iain, he hated talking, period

But I had to knoas cos I lanced away, out toward the sea "Try not to think about it Just close your eyes and ih up in the clouds and that there&039;s nothing that can touch you there You&039;re free to fly anywhere you want to go"

"Is that what you do?"

"Sometimes"

"And others?"

He didn&039;t respond

So we sat there in silence, listening to the waves below crash against the rocks For the first time, I finally understood some of his pain His humiliation I wanted no part in my future and yet I had no choice

As I listened to the waves, it reer Of the hours he used to spend on the rocks, listening to the sea and the voices that called out to hiods&039; voices, Acheron?"

He nodded

"Do you hear theo, he&039;d toldhi what they say?"

He shook his head "I never want to go back to Atlantis I hate it there"

I could well understand that and it made me wonder how much more he must hate it here Sorroays followed him and it was never his fault Hoful not to be able to show your own face for fear of people assaulting you Everywhere he went, everyone who came near wanted him with a desperation that rateful that he couldn&039;t feel those ihts that came to me at the worst possible times

But unlike the other people in his life, I would never act on them He was my brother and I only wanted to protect him Unlike the rest of my family, he saw the real me and loved me in spite of o with me tomorrow to the temple?" I asked quietly

He looked startled by the question

"Please, Acheron I&039; I don&039;t want to be the od I&039;ve never been touched by any e for this"

"It&039;s not hard, Ryssa Just lie there and act as if you like it"

"And if I don&039;t?"

"You pretend you do He&039;ll be so intent on his own pleasure that he&039;ll never even notice if you&039;re griood it feels That&039;s all that round and took his hand in th of his tanned tendons He&039;d been through so ht to complain or beh the terrors of his life

But I wasn&039;t as strong as Acheron I couldn&039;t do this alone I wantedno, I needed someone to be there Someone I could trust to tell me the truth and to see tomorrow for the horror that it was "Please come with me"

There was still reservation in his eyes He didn&039;t want to do this, but he nodded anyway

Grateful, I kissed his hand and held it tightly in mine He alone understood ainst his will

In this ere kindred spirits

December 11, 9529 BC

I&039;d tried my best to sleep, but it was fitful at best This was to be the worst day of od

When it was time to leave for the te the bland colored peplos he used to visit the plays As always, it was pulled up over his head to shield hiood of him to come with me when I knew he didn&039;t want to I wanted to hold his hand for courage, but didn&039;t dare for fear of drawing attention to hiain because of me

Without a word, he followed ht Father would meet me outside, but I was told he was already at the tee fled and left aze "Should I run?"

"They always brought me back whenever I tried and made me very sorry for the attempt"

My stomach cramped even more as I remembered the time I&039;d taken him from Atlantis He&039;d told me then that he would be punished for my actions, but not once had he ever told me how "What did Uncle do to you after I took you from-"

He placed his hand over my lips and shook his head "You don&039;t ever want to know"

I stared up into his silver eyes and saw the pain that was there and it was then I fully understood why he hadn&039;t left behind the life our uncle had taught him I remembered what he&039;d said toeither one of us could do No way to support ourselves

"I tried to find honorable work"

His words haunted ht They would find e, I turned and headed toward the te for ainst irls stood with baskets of white and red rose petals in their hands They scattered them before my feet as they led me toward Apollo&039;s temple

At the door, I aze went past uard"

A snarl curved his lips "What is he doing here?"

"I asked him to come"

Father shoved Acheron back "He&039;s not allowed here He&039;s unclean"

"I want him here"

"No!"

I looked back to see Acheron lift his chin as if the words didn&039;t hurt hiaze

"I shall wait outside for you, Ryssa"

Fathera scene before Apollo that kept hi However, there would be punishment for Acheron later Of that I had no doubt

I held my hand out to athered in my eyes as I choked I wanted to call Acheron to et my voice to cooperate

Acheron drifted away, into the crowd

I wanted to see hi I could do

Against my will, they drew me into the temple and to a destiny I wanted no part in

Acheron

9529 BC-7382 BC

December 11, 9529 BC

Acheron turned away froh hi re re

No doubt his father would punish hier felt physical pain like the rest of the world Tooused and abused had left hi except hatred and anger

Those two emotions burned inside hiainst his will and noas held against him as if he&039;d had a choice in the ht over

So be it

Seeking soeance on the ones who had cursed hi into the temple across the street from Apollo&039;s

It was empty Most likely the occupants and caretakers were all across the street to witness his sister&039;s sacrifice

Fucking pigs

There was nothing people lovedhuave them a sense of power A sense of superiority But in the back of their rateful it wasn&039;t theraded

He walked down the center aisle that was frae columns that stretched up toward the heavens Columns that led toward the statue of a woman He&039;d never been inside a teods had abandoned them and mankind had damned them

Defiantly, he lowered his cowl as he stared up at the carved iold, she was beautiful Her peplos see from an unseen wind and she held a bow in one hand with a quiver of arrows on her back Her left hand rested on a tall poised deer that was brushing up against her leg

He stared at the writing on the tablet at her feet, but couldn&039;t read it

He vaguely recalled Ryssa trying to teach hio when she&039;d rescued him He hadn&039;t seen a scroll or word since

As he traced the first letter of the goddess&039;s nanized it

It was an A Ryssa had told hih his ods and what he knew of them as he tried to think of one whose name sounded similar to his

"You must be Athena," he said out loud It would oddess of war and held a bow in her hand

"I beg your pardon? Athena?!"

He turned sharply at the angry voice behind hi auburn hair and dark green eyes Her beauty was natural and piercing If he were capable of being sexually attracted to anyone, he ht even have desired her But honestly, he&039;d screwed so many people that he could live the rest of his life without another body under, over or near hiown, she stood with her hands on her curvy hips "Are you blind? Or just stupid?"

He snarled at the insults "I aaze before she gestured toward the statue behind hie of Artemis when you see her?"

Acheron rolled his eyes at the mention of Apollo&039;s twin sister He should have known since the teether "Is she as worthless as her brother?"

The woman&039;syour pardon?"