Page 3 of The Cursed Chalice
“The ‘ayes’ have it.” Zeus looks down at me.
“What of the woman?” Dionysus asks. All eyes shift to Talia. I watch as she transforms from a timid, frightened woman into a queen. She throws her shoulders back and lifts her head. The small twitch of her chin is the only sign that she is frightened.
“For the lives lost, for the blood spilled on the streets of Thrace. She will be put to death by lightning bolt.
“No, please, no! Father, please show mercy!” I shout, pulling harder at the chains. Sweat blooms on my forehead.
Dionysus’ laughter booms. “The God of War begging for mercy. What’s next? Demeter’s shy daughter will fall in love?”
The clouds rumble over us; they gather and grow dark grey. My knees scrape against the marble floor and burn. I need to get to her. Please. The more I pull, the more pain I feel . And for the first time in my life, I feel helpless.
I watch as Talia stares up at the sky, and she screams my name. “Ares? Ares, help me…please.”
My gaze meets my father’s. His hard stare tells me that there is nothing I can do. I bow my head in defeat.
Until today, I have never felt the urge to cry. I did this. I close my eyes, and I hear the desperate clanking of Talia’s chains. “Ares!”
The thunder cracks above me.
“TALIA. LOOK AT ME!” I shout. Everything around me feels like it’s slowed down when my eyes meet hers. I give her a small, sad smile. My eyes trace her face, trying to record every feature. Her smile that lights up the room, the small dimple at the side of her cheek. She inhales as a single tear rolls down her cheek.
The thunder rumbles loudly, telling me that her time is now.
“Goodbye, my love,” she whispers. Her eyes leave mine as she bravely looks up at the sky. A bright streak of lightning descends on her.
“Talia!” I scream out, my shoulders burning as I strain forward. Air leaves me as I watch and listen to her screams. Every cell in my body vibrates in pain, and my eyes water from the bright light of the lightning. And just like that, she is gone. I failed her. This was because of me. The smell of burning flesh sits in the room like a sacrifice.
The room remains quiet; only my ragged cries echo throughout the halls. “Talia.” I whisper her name like a prayer. I hang my head in defeat. It doesn’t matter what they do to me. I am numb, empty.
“Son…” My mother’s voice breaks the silence. Tears seep down my face. I had never cried before today.
Zeus stretches his arm and points to me.
“Since your heart belongs to a mortal, so shall your soul. I strip you of your divinity and exile you to walk among the mortals. In dust and dirt you shall dwell. May this pain teach you what your power never could.”
I don’t know how to explain it. My body weakens; every sinew of muscle feels deflated. I collapse forward onto my hands. I press my head against the golden floor. I take solace in the cold feeling against my forehead. “Talia.” I groan.
“I beg for mercy, oh, Zeus,” Aphrodite says. “No god should be exiled from Olympus forever.”
Hearing her beg for my mercy makes me angry. She wanted to humiliate me because I loved someone other than her.
I hear a swooshing sound at my side. Twisting my head, I see the blue light of Talia’s soul and my blood fused together in a ball. Swirling and whirling, a smooth gold bubble rises above me. I pull myself up and sit back on my heels.
The bubble dissolves, and a gold chalice hangs upon nothing.
“Let it be known,” Zeus thunders, his eyes streaked with lightning, “the one who drinks from this vessel shall be bound to you in love, body, and soul.”
The skies above me rumble. “Deny this fate, and madness shall take root. It will grow day by day until your mind lies in ruin and ash.”
The blue light of Talia’s soul floats before Zeus. His lips curl.
“Then let her soul be sealed within the cup. As time passes, her soul will wither. In time, she will fade into nothingness, a shadow lost in a void.”
Zeus used love as an engine for my punishment. The chalice drops out of the air and lands in front of me. The clanking sound echoes through the pantheon.
“The Chalice of Oaths. May it fall into the hands of love and grant you a lesson that you will never forget,” Apollo sings as he strums his lyre.
My rage spills over. My nose flares, and snot hangs down over my lips. “What lesson is that, Apollo? That there is power in true love?”
