Disclaimer: None of this is based on actual Greek mythology, Just the names were used.
I'm sorry this has taken this long. And we (myself and my lovely co-author @annacarina2) really hope you enjoy it!
Cliffhanger warnings apply😘
XOXO
P. S. The bedroom scene referred to is the 1st half of the prologue. 😘
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“Barry! Time for bed!” Nora announces as she comes into the living room from the kitchen, only to find that the area is deserted. She hears the thump-thump of little footsteps above her and chuckles to herself as she carries the glass of warm milk up to her son’s room.
“Barry.” She sings out as she pushes open the door and finds his smiling face, bright and green eyed, eagerly waiting for her.
“Well would you look at that, you’ve already picked out a bedtime story,” she remarks, noting the book clasped in his little hands. He nods with excitement and holds it up for her to see the cover.
Sons of Zeus
“Are you sure you want to read this one again tonight?” Nora asks sceptically as her son’s obsession with the Supernatural past makes her a little uneasy. Barry nods in confirmation.
“Can we? please?” he asks so sweetly that she can’t help but smile.
“Of course my beautiful boy.” She answers setting the milk down on the bedside table and taking the book from him. Nora settles down beside her son and Barry rests his head on her chest as she wraps her arms around him and begins to read…
Once upon a time
In a land beyond the clouds.
There lived a mighty God by the name of Zeus. His power surpassed that of any other and this, when combined with his great inclination for leadership and kind heart granted him the title of ruler of the realm of light. His power resided in the deadly brilliance of lightning, a gift he generously shared with his two sons:
Achilles and Apollo.
Along with his radiant and brave queen, Iris, Zeus did his best to bestow upon his children the virtues of love, kindness, humility and courage but this was a task that proved challenging even for the most powerful of Gods.
You see, mere days before his brother’s birth, Achilles found himself entranced by the sharp tongue of an elderly sorceress who drew him out with a promise of adventure. It was there, in the vast blue, with the son completing its journey around the earth beneath them, that this vixen of the unknown soiled the naïve soul’s mind with hateful notions. Insinuations that his mother’s love could not be shared, that his brother would be the end of his family.
Her words were tainted with a thirst for revenge that poor Achilles, young as he was, could not as yet point out and with an innocence common to one so green, he fell for her every word. His little heart was consumed by a fear of loss and upon his brother’s arrival the damage had been done and the seed of hatred nestled warmly within his tiny heart…
Nora looked down at a softly snoring Barry and smiled, relieved that she would not have to re-read the dreadful nursery scene to her ten year old son. Truthfully she didn’t want to have to relive that horror. As gently as she possibly could, she lifted herself off of the bed and tucked him in, giving him a soft kiss goodnight before turning on his night light. With a final look back she turned the rooms light off and left the door ajar behind her. As she reached the bottom of the stairs the front door opened and in walked her husband.
Well, a part of him anyway.
Henry smiled at her though his eyes betrayed his exhaustion and Nora reached for his brief case as she leaned in for a ‘welcome home’ kiss.
“Long day?” she asked as he took her empty hand in his and let her lead him to the living room.
“The longest.” He admitted and brought their hands up to his lips to kiss the back of hers.
“How’s our little slugger?” he asked, nodding in the general direction of the stairs.
“Fast asleep. I just put him down.” She smiled as she let go of his hand and walked to the dining room table to put his briefcase down on one of the chairs. She knew her husband well and tired or not he’d be staying up a little later, after the street completely quieted down and the neighbours were all asleep, to do some work. A lawyer’s job is just never done.
“I’ll go say goodnight,” he answered with a tone that was both soft from exhaustion and energised with his love for his son. Nora offered him, her usual heart-warming smile as a ‘go ahead’ before he made his way to the stairs. A few seconds later a thump rang in her ears followed by her husbands muffled cry of agony.
“Henry?” she questioned as she rounded the wall to see her husband bent over, one hand on the railing to hold him up and the other clutching his heart. She knew instantly that something was terribly wrong.
“Honey? Speak to me honey what’s going on?”
Her urgency was met with harsh breathing. His eyes widened as the wheezing grew louder. Then suddenly…
It stopped.
Henry stilled in her arms and the light of life vanished from his panicked eyes, frozen open in death. Nora felt the blood in her veins run cold and her mind began to buzz as adrenaline flooded her system.
He can’t be dead. Not unless….
Her eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets as realisation kicked in and without a second breath she abandoned Henry’s lifeless body and took the stairs two at a time.
“Barry!” She yelled, desperate to wake her son but just as she reached his door she froze, her body overwhelmed by an unknown force. She felt herself burning from the inside out and yelled out in pain.
“Mom!” came Barry’s frightened cry and through her misty eyes she could see his little face stained with fearful tears. A loud ringing echoed in her ears and her head began to pound violently. Nora braced herself against the door frame, shutting her eyes against the sudden wave of pain that flooded her body. She wanted to yell. To tell Barry to run, but she could barely breathe, let alone string together a sentence.
She felt her body give in.
She felt her eyes roll to the back of her head.
She felt her body hit the ground.
She felt her soul depart.
She opened her eyes and she was Nora no more.
She had returned to her true form. The form that was all powerful.
The form that bore the name:
Iris.
Her long hair, like threaded sunlight, rolled down her back to her waist. Her cloud like skin, soft and pail, seemed to glisten as if coated with the finest layer of glitter. The white dress, resembling ancient Greek attire, seemed to melt into the mist that floated lightly above the clouds that she called home.
But home it was far from.
Around her a show of lightning took place. Concealing the normally clear and infinite blue was a chaotic painting of bolts, lightning bolts, zipping about in all manner of directions. And in the middle of it all stood her eldest son, hovering over the quickly fading body of her husband.
Iris covered her mouth with the palm of her hand, muffling out her cry as the last remnants of the all mighty Zeus dissolved into a string of sparks that swirled into the air, disappearing soon after like ashes scattered in the wind.
She felt the last of his essence soak into her, feeding her all his power, every last drop.
And then he was gone.
Zeus was no more.
He lives on. In me!
She thought to herself, her eyes now focusing on the back she rubbed so gently in an attempt to ease the growing pains.
“What have you done?” She asked, her voice soft with disbelief. He didn’t stir.
“Achilles! What have you done!” She screamed, a thunderous noise that echoed out into the distance. Her son turned around to face her and she realised in that instant that, that was not Achilles. His eyes glowed a gut twisting red, like laser beams on a snipers rifle, aimed for the kill.
“Achilles?” her motherly heart called out, clinging to the hope that he might still be within reach, but his stare remained. Cold and fixed. His features were unmoving, set on an expression of pure malice. Of evil. Though her power granted her the luxury of fearlessness her heart still trembled out of love for her youngest son.
“Mommy!” Barry’s cry rose to them and she knew that Achilles had heard it too when his lips contorted into a devilish grin. A bolt of lighting fell, striking him where he stood, and just like that he vanished.
But she knew where he was going.
With all the strength she had, she compressed her abilities as much as she could, folding into herself until her aura was weak enough to inhabit a mortal body. Iris returned to her human form, taking a loud, deep breath once she resurfaced as Nora with Barry’s teary face buried in her chest.
“Shh, shh, shh. It’s OK. I’m here. I’m here.” She tried to calm him down as his sobs shook his entire body. Her head pounded with a raging migraine and she knew that she couldn’t stay in this form much longer. She had to get Barry somewhere safe.
“Barry baby listen to me.” She said with a gentle sternness as she wiped the tears from his cheeks and cupped his face.
“Listen to me we need to get out of here OK? Mommy doesn’t have time to explain right now but I need you to hold my hand and run OK? Don’t look back and don’t stop for any reason alright baby?” She asked and he nodded in her hands. Nora planted a quick kiss on his forehead then stood up and took hold of his hand.
“Alright. Come on.” She said as she took off towards the stairs, dashing down as fast as Barry’s childish legs would allow. As they approached Henry’s body, she felt her son give her hand a squeeze and she knew then that in her moment of unconsciousness Barry had made the horrifying discovery. Her heart ached as she imagined his fear and grief at the thought that he might be alone.
They reached the door and she swung it open, gasping when she came face to face with Achilles.
He had found them.
Despite her restricting herself into that suit of flesh in an attempt to camouflage herself, he’d tracked them down. Instinctively she pulled Barry behind her, acting as a human shield.
“Achilles, please,” she begged, her voice barely above a whisper. His head tilted to the side, his eyes still red as he had retained his godly form.
“Please. I beg you. Don’t hurt him.” She pleaded once again. But it was no use. Achilles flung her to the side with a single, unpredictable, slap to the face leaving a trembling Barry staring up at him, paralysed by shock. The apparition lifted his hand, his palm facing Barry, as he planned his final strike.
“Run, Barry! Run!” Nora yelled, gathering what strength was still left in that broken vessel. His mother’s scream was enough to jolt him out of his fear and Barry turned around, sprinting in the opposite direction. Achilles made no move to chase him, instead his hand grew bright with the surge of electricity that grew around it as he prepared his blast.
He aimed.
He charged.
He fired.
“No!”
Iris broke free of her corporeal state, burning Nora away with the intensity of her essence. She sped into the bolts trajectory and it struck her straight in the heart.
The world disappeared in a flash of light.