OF WAR Anthology Novels 1-3

by Lisa Beth Darling

  Cernunnos let go a hearty laugh as he stood fast, tall, and strong, believing the Sacred Circle would protect him as his Destiny approached.

  Help was so close and yet so far away. Alena turned her eyes from Ares and tried to speak again even as she felt the life force within being sucked away from her. “The…the…power… to…” Suddenly she could not remember the words or, for a terrifying moment, even what words were and how to form them. She just stood there reeling on her feet with the sword bobbling in her hand.

  Maybe the Sacred Circle Alena cast kept out Ares’ weapon but it was not going to hold back the God of War. Ares charged at it full bore, with his head down and his shoulders squared as though he were about to head butt a bull. As his big booted foot crossed the line, Ares felt a mild tingling and slightly cold sensation encase him head to toe but no force held him back. To him it seemed, no force even tried. Cernunnos’ eyes grew wide with surprise and terror when Ares fully entered the Sacred Circle, crushing several of the bottles at his feet. “What’cha got to say now?”

  “NO!” Cernunnos bellowed as he watched the bottles shatter and their little glowing contents begin to float about the room. “Get back here! I command it!” he shouted to them.

  While the Great Horn God railed, Ares grabbed his sword out of Alena’s faltering hand; he pushed her aside to a safer place, while he struck out with the blade. Cernunnos jumped back as Alena fell to the floor with the Staff in her hand. With the sword gone, the energy coming into her through the Staff now shot out her fingertips in great streaks of purple lightning. It bounced around the room, blowing holes in walls and shattering the large window at the end of the room. Smoke from the fire outside began to pour into the structure while the Staff continued on destroying tables and chairs as they exploded and caught fire in the Great Hall. Colorful tapestries hung everywhere here and it wasn’t long before they also turned to flame, great blazes of fire ran up the walls in search of the oak beams before the fuel of the tapestries could be spent.

  The God of War, handsome face twisted in anger, eyes filled with fiery determination, brought fire to his blade as he lashed out with it. Again Cernunnos backed up and away from it, his own hooves crushing the bottles at his feet, until they were over the perimeter of the Sacred Circle and Ares was following him. Soon his own big boots were over the line as he chased Cernunnos out into the room. Finding a small piece of her mind left to her, Alena rolled over the line. “The Sacred Circle is broken!” she said in the loudest strongest voice she could muster. “All are dismissed, go in peace!” she gasped, as she lay weak and dizzy on the floor.

  “Or go in pieces,” Ares hissed at Cernunnos.

  “You bitch!” Cernunnos shouted as the room drained of the Ritual Energy she had raised for him. The wind outside ceased its howl. The rain stopped. The thunder was heard no more. He turned his raging eyes to Ares. “This ends now.” Cernunnos tossed a large ball of deep red energy at Ares and stood in awe as the God of War batted it away with his flaming word as though he were in the World Series. The energy hit the far wall high near the ceiling, blew a hole straight through as it rained down chunks of rock and debris. The heavy oak beam gave way; part of the upper floor fell into the Great Hall.

  “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Ares agreed.

  The two Gods charged at each other like the Wild Beasts they were. Both with heads down, shoulders back, but here Cernunnos had a distinct advantage with those antlers, or so he thought. Running at each full speed, Ares kept his eyes focused closely upon his adversary, knowing that just before the two of them met head-on, Cernunnos would bow his head a little further before he brought it up with great force, hoping to rip flesh from bone. He intended to cut off Cernunnos’ head but he misjudged the swiftness the Half-Stag possessed and by the time Ares swung with the blade, Cernunnos was already on the upward swing. Ares sword sliced through the Great Horned Gods antlers, severing many of them and leaving them smoking on the stone floor.

  Cernunnos stood up his full height while his hooves trotted in place; he threw back his head and let out a cry of pain and anguish at the loss of his majestic antlers. Nostrils flaring and his right hoof scratching at the floor, Cernunnos’ eyes narrowed on Ares. “I’m going to kill you with my bare hands.”

  “Bring it,” Ares dared. “Let’s see what’cha got.” His heart raced with the thrill of Battle as his brawny body broke out in a light glistening sweat. From behind him came a familiar sound, one that made Ares smile wider and one that made Cernunnos scowl further. It was the sound of breaking glass. Alena reached the bottles; she was freeing the souls trapped within them as quickly as she could. Small balls of light floated everywhere. “Ooops.”

  That bit of mocking enraged Cernunnos to the point where he could no longer see straight. His objective became not Ares but the bitch behind him. He had to get to her before she could destroy every last one of them. His hoof scratched at the ground again as he settled back on his haunches and made ready to pounce. As the God of War waited for the coming attack, he realized at the last second he misgauged Cernunnos’ target. Like the Great Stag of the Forest he was, Cernunnos leapt high over Ares’ head and well past the God of War to land in front of Alena. No thought or hesitation, he turned around and kicked out backward with one strong hoof connecting with the space between her breasts, sending her flying backward halfway across the room. Landing on the cold floor, after taking the force of the brutal heart-kick, Alena slid a few more feet before she came to a silent rest near the burning tables. She lay there motionless; Ares wasn’t even sure she was breathing.

  Then it was Ares who could not see straight. All around was lost to him and there was only Cernunnos before his fiery warring eyes. Holding his flaming blade in line with his right shoulder and turning his body in the same direction with his armor facing his enemy, Ares charged at the Great Horned God with an ear-splitting warrior’s cry. Crossing over the remains of the Sacred Circle his heavy boots demolished the remaining bottles—bits of colored glass flew everywhere in dust and shards. The last of the souls Cernunnos had captured were floating free about the room as though they were watching and awaiting the outcome of the Battle.

  With no horns for protection, Cernunnos relied upon his magick to combat the God of War; he tossed more streaks of hot energy at Ares, some of which Ares deflected away with his blade and others struck the heavy leather armor where they smoldered but did not burn through. Eyes cast quickly to the woman on the floor; Cernunnos used the Powers of his Mind to call the Staff to his hand. He held it up crosswise and blocked with it when Ares came down with his sword in a long hacking motion. The wood creaked as the blade struck it but it held up, for how long that would remain true Cernunnos was unsure. Pulling back on one end and striking out with the other, Cernunnos tried to strike Ares’ jaw but Ares was much taller than Cernunnos and he had time to move out of the way of the blow. The Staff sliced through the air with a loud whoosh.

  Never one to miss an opportunity, Ares came up quickly after having ducked down and landed a vicious upper cut on Cernunnos’ lower jaw. In his mouth, the teeth of the Great Horned God shattered like the crystal bottles at his feet. Swiping his hand across the broken jaw and spitting out a mouthful of broken teeth, his hoof scratched the floor as his heart raced. Not one for hand-to-hand combat, Cernunnos struck out almost blindly with his fist. It connected with Ares’ flank but that was only because Ares hand leapt into the air and was on the downward swing using the force of gravity to propel his fist, guarded by those heavy rings, into Cernunnos’ cheek. The force of the blow drove Cernunnos to his knees as his cheek and nose splintered inside and out. Ares did not stop there, he had great follow-through and kept the strike going. He clipped but did not break Cernunnos’ neck and his collarbone took the last bit of the hit and cracked as Ares landed on his feet only to keep up the assault. Planting one hand on each side of Cernunnos’ head he brought his knee up sharply into Cernunnos’ chin, breaking the remainder of the Great Hor
ned God’s face while it forced him to a seated position on the floor. “You think you can violate my woman, hmmm? My Sister? Who the hell are you? You’re nothing,” Ares spat vehemently as he followed Cernunnos’ body down.

  “I am the Lord, Your God, Master of All I Survey,” Cernunnos returned, keeping Ares’ eyes locked to his.

  “You’re not my God,” Ares returned as he leaned in closer to Cernunnos’ mangled bleeding face. Just as he reached out to grab the Great Horned God by the broken jaw and twist his head off, Cernunnos used those powerful hooves to kick out and knock the God of War off his feet.

  “Then there is no salvation for you,” Cernunnos said clearly, as he rose and began to heal before Ares’ eyes. “I will slay you and hold up your bloody corpse as an example for all those who would oppose me.” He looked over to Alena still and quiet on the floor as the room filled with smoke and flame. He took a step as if in her direction.

  Ares made the mistake of attempting to rise to his feet and met with a swift kick from both of Cernunnos’ hooves. It sent him reeling back and sliding across the floor, left his jaw aching and open. Before he could get up, Cernunnos let fly with a bolt of lightning from the palm of his hand. Ares tried to deflect it with his sword but was too late; it hit him in the chest just below his heart and knocked the wind out of him as it burned his flesh.

  “You so deserve this, Ares and I’m going to give it to you no matter what it costs me,” Cernunnos whispered darkly as he called Ares’ dagger, lying outside the remains of the Sacred Circle to his hand and then sprinted to Alena. Hovering over her, Cernunnos brought her unconscious body up to a sitting position so Ares would have a better view. “Say good-bye, Ares. Say good-bye to the troublesome little bitch.” Before turning his eyes back to the woman, he gave the God of War his own winning smile of straight even white teeth that already replaced the broken shards. It was a shame to kill her but worth it just to hear it when Ares howled in anguish. Bringing the dagger up high in the air, Cernunnos had to have one last favor from his Granddaughter, as the hand came down, he brought her upward as he leaned closer and kissed her on the mouth wanting to take in her last breath from her lungs as Death came to meet her.

  There was a strange sensation; it was almost cold and almost painful. Whatever it was, it caused him to freeze and the dagger to fall from his hand to the floor. Cernunnos was not sure what it was until he looked down and saw Ares’ blade jutting through his chest.

  “You say good-bye, you son of a bitch.”

  Even as his blood flowed freely from his body and the blade receded so that Ares could take off his head, Cernunnos knew it would be he who had the last laugh.

  Even in Death.

  Ares, God of War, did not disappoint. Drawing the blade from Cernunnos’ chest, he grabbed a handful of his hair to hold his head up straight. With one hand, Ares sliced the blade through the air then through Cernunnos’ neck. The Great Horned God’s head flew off his shoulders as his body fell across Alena. It landed in the continually approaching flames and burned until it turned to ash.

  With Cernunnos dead, Ares could turn his attention to what truly mattered: Alena. He ripped the corpse of the Great Horned God off her, expecting to see her eyes opening but instead his eyes beheld a gruesome sight. There was blood on those charred robes falling open to reveal her alabaster flesh and the gaping hole near her heart.

  Ares crashed to his knees by her side.

  Cernunnos had been too close to her. Ares was lost in his anger; he struck out too hard, too far, too fast. The blade that pierced through Cernunnos’ chest went right through her as well. “Alena?” Ares whispered with the vanishing hope that he hadn’t killed her in his voice. “Alena!” Throwing the blade aside, he took her up in his arms and rocked her motionless body. “Don’t do this; you swore you would never leave me. You promised. Stay with me, my Love.” In the midst of the smoke and the flames, Ares began to weep as he brought her closer to him. “I love you, Alena. I am sorry. So sorry, my Love.”

  Aphrodite escaped the shackles and the dungeon the same way Ares had done although it took her a little longer as she had no experience with lock picking. She came up the stairs and toward the sound of the commotion only to enter the scene just before Ares’ took off Cernunnos’ head. Now she stood in the doorway at a complete loss for words. The sight of the God of War on his knees and weeping over the body of the little Fey tugged at her heart. Rarely had the Goddess of Love seen Ares express any emotion other than lust or rage. In the years she’d known him, the only day she saw tears in his eyes was the day he carried Artemis home. Here he was openly weeping, his heart breaking as he rocked Alena gently in his arms.

  The glittering orbs of light floating near the fiery ceiling descended to the ground and, for a moment, they took their proper ghostly shapes. All of the Gods who had once ruled this world, once been looked up to and worshipped, were powerless to aid the dying woman who had freed them.

  Walking over to where he sat with her own heart growing heavier, Aphrodite laid a hand on Ares’ shoulder. She looked at the apparitions staring back at her with wonder. “We…we have to go. The entire forest is on fire, Ares.”

  “Help her,” Ares begged.

  In this exact moment, Aphrodite would do nearly anything if she could do just that. “It’s beyond my ability. If we hurry, if we go right now, if we take her to Olympus,” she said, trying to sound encouraging although she was unsure if Zeus would pitch a fit, she was sure that if it were within her Power that Hera would help.

  The three of them disappeared from the fortress surrounded by fire, leaving it to burn itself out and purify the land it left behind.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  An Offer He Can’t Refuse

  Olympus

  For the second time in his life, Ares God of War walked through the Gates of Olympus with the limp body of a woman he loved in his arms. When he returned with Artemis it was far too late to do anything but Alena’s heart, with the unexpected help of Aphrodite, was still struggling to beat and keep her alive. “Mother! Mother!” The God of War bellowed as he swiftly made his way past the Gates with Aphrodite trying to keep up with his long legs and not let her hands fall away from the gaping hole in Alena’s chest. In order to maintain some semblance of privacy here on Olympus, teleporting around the top of the mountain was not possible and so Ares had to keep running past the Gates and to his Father’s Palace where he knew he would find Hera.

  After Ares left to fight the battle, each of the Olympians retired to their own abodes rather than watch the battle in the Council Chamber. Each could watch from their home if they wanted but few of them did, most of them spent the time between Ares’ departure and his return contemplating their own fates should Ares lose. From the top of his Tower, where Eros was staring off into space longing for his lost Psyche, he saw Ares sprinting toward the Gates and then through them with Aphrodite by his side. Apollo did not see the sight until they were through the Gates, which were not far from his home. Athena heard Ares shouting before she saw him spring past her Temple.

  The good news was Ares was obviously victorious and none of the Olympians had to worry about Cernunnos any longer. The bad news was more painfully acute as it lay limp in Ares’ bulging arms. Soon, along with the guests that gathered from far and wide, all were standing in Zeus’ Palace watching Ares lay the nearly lifeless woman down on the Zeus’ dining table. “I did what you wanted,” Ares announced quickly. “Cernunnos is dead. Father, heal her.” The proud announcement quickly turned to a rough demand.

  “Her time is very short,” Aphrodite said hurriedly, “I’ve been doing my best to keep her alive but I’m tiring.”

  “You? Helped Alena?” Eros asked as he stared at his Mother in shock then turned his gaze to Apollo only to find Apollo with his mouth also hanging open as he tried to get his head around what he’d just heard.

  Aphrodite could not hold onto Alena any longer, her hands slipped away from the Fey’s forehead. Athena rushed f
orward to take over the task, knowing that she too wasn’t strong enough to mend the wounds but she could help Alena hang onto the Thread of Life. Exhausted, Aphrodite stumbled away from the table to stand between her Son and his Father.

  Ares’ attention was focused on his Father but he caught a glimpse of movement from the corner of his eye. The God of War turned around to see Hades standing behind them with a forlorn expression on his otherwise handsome face. “Get away from her.”

  “Ares,” Hades offered calmly as he held his hands up with the palms open hoping to show he meant no malice and this was nothing personal. “I am what I am.” He offered a bit more sternly when Ares’ expression only hardened. “Move aside, Nephew. Her time has come.”

  “No.” Ares returned defiantly through lips that didn’t seem to move at all.

  Hades started to walk toward them, taking those thick leather gloves off his cold hands as he came near. Ares stood his ground but made no move to stop Hades as he came near and began to lean over Alena. When he reached out with that newly ungloved hand, Ares wrapped his forearm around Hades’ and pulled him backward, keeping that bare hand away from her and his own skin. Hades tried to pull away but Ares was too strong. The God of Death did not want this to get ugly, Hades always preferred peaceful crossings to violent ones, and surely the little Fey deserved that much. “She is in agony, Ares. Is that what you want for her? To suffer?”

  Without warning, Ares brought up his big booted foot, planted it in Hades’ side, and gave a mighty shove. Hades stumbled back as Ares’ let go of his forearm. “What I want is for you to GET AWAY FROM HER!” Ares turned back to his Parents knowing that even he could not keep Hades away from Alena forever. “I’ve done everything you wanted. In return, you are to reward me. This is what I want. Give it to me!”