OF WAR Anthology Novels 1-3

by Lisa Beth Darling

  Spirit Walker bounded into the kitchen; seeing his master struggle, he did what any good canine would do; he attacked Onya. The pup clamped down on her bare arm with razor sharp teeth and she let out a scream. In order to get the pup off her, she let go of Raven’s neck and the bar of soap. Getting a handful of fur, she pulled on the pup until he let go and then nearly flung him across the room as she watched blood gush from her forearm. “That little shit, he…” she was stopped there when a wet little hand clamped down on the back of her neck and the bar of soap was suddenly shoved into her gaping mouth to slide halfway down her throat.

  Raven, his serpent eyes blazing with cold fire, sneered at her as he stood, holding the bar in her mouth. “How do you like it?”

  The little boy was stronger than Onya ever would have imagined; no matter how much she pushed at him or struggled to be free of his merciless grasp he just wouldn’t let go. Her mind raced with thoughts of dying here on the kitchen floor with the wolf pup behind her, on his haunches, ready to strike, and the angry little boy sneering at her like a bug under a microscope as the nasty tasting soap blocked her airway. “H-h-help!” She managed to call out without choking.

  “Shut up!”

  “H-help!”

  “I said shut up!” Raven bellowed and tightened his grip, a feat Onya wouldn’t have thought possible until he actually did it. “Taste good, bitch? You like that?”

  That was when Alena and Ares arrived home. “RAVEN! What in the name of the Gods are you doing? Let her go!” Onya, a full-grown even if petite woman, was fighting for her very life as her face went from crimson to light blue and Raven stood there smiling, watching her. Rushing across the kitchen to pry Raven off Onya, Spirit Walker decided it was a good time to defend his master and leapt at her face, sharp little teeth bared and claws already reaching out for her in midair. Out of her own survival instincts, Alena laced her hands together and gave the wolf a good smack when he came within range of the double axe handle. The animal tumbled through the air and then to the floor where he hit his head and sat there dazed for a few moments as Alena continued rushing forward. She grabbed hold of Raven’s hands and pulled as hard as she could, but his grip was like a vice. Onya was turning a terrifying shade of azure. “Let her go! Now Raven!” Almost worse than that, Raven’s hands were encasing themselves in ice.

  “No!” The boy snarled, “She’s a bitch! She made me eat soap; now it’s her turn!”

  Alena never hit her son not once; she did raise a hand to him but now she had no choice as she laced her fingers together one more time and brought them down in a mighty blow on the upturned joints of his elbows. Raven’s arms sank with the force and his fingers released for half a moment, long enough for Alena to plant her foot in Onya’s stomach and push the young woman away from him. On the floor, Onya spat out the soap. Gasping for air, with her hand to her throat and her eyes wide, she stared at the boy who’d almost taken her life.

  “You whore!” Raven bellowed at his mother and let loose with a barrage of ice balls from his palms. Several of the four-pound balls of solid ice hit Alena square in the head, knocking her backward and then off her feet. When she was on the ground and curled up in a protective ball, he kept going.

  With her head tucked firmly to her chest and knees, Alena called out for her Husband. “Ares!”

  The God of War was already on his way and coming to the call of his Wife, who sounded not only frightened but in pain. He materialized in the kitchen right in the middle of an onslaught of ice balls striking him in the back. Turning around swiftly, he saw Raven, ice balls flying out of the palms of his hands, his eyes glazed over. One of the heavy balls struck Ares in the chest and he stared at the boy to see if Raven would show any sign of recognition, but other than to adjust his course so that his aim was once more against his mother, Raven showed no signs of stopping his assault. By the side of the sink, settled on his haunches, the wolf looked from one terrified wounded woman to the next, not knowing which to go after first. Ares sent the animal a clear and convincing message with his mind: Don’t even think about it.

  Spirit Walker did as Ares told him and retreated around the sink, but kept its eyes and nose stuck out so he could see what was happening. Ares ran in to tackle the boy. He grabbed Raven, clasping the boy’s hands tightly together against his body. The next ice ball that flew out from Raven’s palms, hit him square in the frank and beans. That was the last ice ball for the night. Raven let out an indignant cry of pain as Father and Son hit the hard kitchen floor. “What do you think you’re doing, boy?”

  “My cock!” Raven cried out. “Oh! My cock!” He brought his knees up to his throat much like his mother had done and writhed in agony, holding onto his little balls.

  Alena made her way across the slippery floor on her hands and knees to Onya’s side. “Are you all right?”

  Now that she could breathe again, Onya felt much better but her throat hurt too much to talk and she had the horrible taste of soap in her mouth. She nodded to Alena and sat up to look across the room.

  “He tried to kill her,” Alena accused.

  “My balls!” Raven continued wailing. “Who cares about them? MY cock hurts!”

  “That’s it.” Ares hauled Raven to his feet by his hair. “Go to your room, now.” He herded Raven toward the open door. “We’re going to have a little talk.”

  The boy looked back at the two shocked women and sneered at them, “When we get back to the real Olympus you’re gonna be sooo sorry.”

  II

  With unpleasant events of late starting to make sense to him, Ares sat his Son down on his bed and sealed the bedroom door. “What was that all about?”

  “She made me eat soap.”

  Ares was confused. “What? Who?”

  “Onya,” Raven announced, “that bitch. All I did was ask if she was fucking you and….” The next thing Raven knew his cheek stung and there was a sound like thunder ringing in his ears. He raised his hand from his aching balls to his stinging cheek as tears welled up in his eyes.

  “Never use that word in my house, boy.” Ares had never heard of making a disobedient child eat soap but it seemed a fitting punishment to him. But, for Raven, suffering such a punishment at the hands of a mere mortal woman only added a huge heap of insult to injury. “Whatever Onya and I once did is not your concern.”

  “You fucked all of ‘em,” Raven said in defiance and waited for a second slap from his Father’s hand with his cheek jutted out. The hit didn’t come, instead Ares only sat there staring at him with anger smoldering in his eyes. “You do a lot of that.”

  “When you’re grown you will, too.

  “Am I gunna kill ‘em too?”

  Another little warning signal that there was more going on here than met the eye. Ares let the comment pass for the moment. “What do you know about the real Olympus?”

  Still cupping his package in his hands, Raven sat cross-legged on his bed. “It’s in the stars; it’s not this crappy place. It’s beautiful.”

  The next day, Ares first brought up the idea of this little camping trip and a little Father/Son time. He was tight-lipped about whatever Raven said as they sat in the boy’s room, but Alena felt the weight sitting on his broad shoulders and saw it reflected in his eyes. Without pressing for answers, Alena agreed and hoped for the best. While Ares was heavy-handed in his approach to parenting, he was seldom wrong.

  This trip had another purpose and that was for Alena to get a little peace and quiet. She hadn’t been feeling very well lately. For the last several months, sleep was no longer her friend and instead she lay in the dark deep in the grip of an unseen panic. She shook, sweat, felt terrified, certain she was in danger and that she was dying. There was nothing but the bedroom and Ares next to her. Sometimes at night she cuddled up close to him, trying to crawl inside of him. Other nights when the panic ran rabid through her mind, she slept far out of his reach, nearly hanging off the edge of the bed. Still on other nights, she woke him with sex. T
hose were the worst nights of all. Nothing calmed her brain; nothing reassured her that there was nothing wrong. Everything ached and ran wild with panic. Trying to crawl inside him wasn’t good enough, it numbed that sensation but it didn’t kill it. Only one thing would, the panic even seemed to know that it was driving her to it. She’d reach down between his sleeping legs to find the waiting hard-on and that was all she wrote. No kisses, no cuddles, no snuggles. One minute he was asleep and the next she was riding him. There was no feeling in it. It was almost as though she were trying to numb so deep an ache that she couldn’t reach it, but hoped his cock could.

  It did. For a little while, it did.

  During the day, she had headaches that drove her to distraction. They started as a dull little pounding behind her eyes but then went down the back of her head and neck to make her whole body nearly numb. They made her mind wander off to wondrous places she’d never seen. She couldn’t describe these places because, in her head, they were more feelings than pictures. Sensations of awe and wonder mixed with fear and dread. They captured her sometimes and they made it so hard to come back to reality when someone called her name.

  Ares worried but Alena insisted she was just tired from caring for Raven, he was a very excitable boy and that was stressful and draining. A few days with Ares and Raven away on the island doing and discussing manly things would let Alena catch up on her rest and relax, and Alena was sure she would be back to herself in no time at all. Ares wasn’t so sure; Alena looked tired and dazed all of the time as she gazed out at the world, the dark circles under her eyes marring those lovely alabaster cheeks. There were lines on her face, deep crevices at the corners of her eyes and her mouth. It was with a great amount of trepidation that Ares walked with her to the front door of the Fortress where he reminded her to keep the door locked. Everyone knew he and Raven were going on this trip and he didn’t want any unwelcome visitors, such as Apollo, just barging in. “You need me, you just call my name and I’ll be here.” The God of War gave his Wife a full-on deep kiss that she returned with passionate delight.

  Behind them, Raven groaned and muttered something about ‘gross’.

  “We’ll be back in a few days. Until then, you let the women wait on you, all right? I hear they have plans for you,” Ares said, nuzzling his forehead to hers with a smile as he listened to Raven’s complaints. “I love you.” That brought more groaning from Raven. “You rest while I’m gone. I want you full of energy when I return.”

  “I love you, too.”

  “Can we go now? Is the mushy stuff done? Or are you just gonna fuck her right here?”

  In his arms, Alena cringed. “That’s the last time he says that,” Ares whispered to her and kissed her lips again. “All done,” Ares said, breaking the embrace and deciding to deal with the crude remark once they reached the island. Alena stood in the doorway watching them walk through the snow to the gates of the outer wall. Ares closed them behind him and they were out of sight. From the front stoop, deep in the valley of the top of Mount Olympus, Alena looked up to see Apollo standing in the window of his Temple, watching Ares and Raven go. Eros was on top of his Tower doing the same. Zeus was no exception as he stood on the steps of his Palace.

  Suddenly a loud bellow shook the top of Mount Olympus just before the Gates opened. “Don’t even think about it!” Ares shouted without having to look around at the eyes staring at him.

  Alena giggled as the tension growing within her broke. She shut—and locked—the Fortress door to start her little vacation away from her Boys.

  III

  “I’m going out for a while,” Alena announced as she put on her coat and made for the front door of the Fortress, “I’ll be back.”

  “Wait, where are you going?” Onya wanted to know, it wasn’t as though there was a lot to do up here or people to visit with. “We have a nice day planned for you.”

  “It will wait until I get back.” Without further explanation, Alena went through the front door and plodded through the deep snow, up the steep hill across the top of the mountain to Athena’s temple. If there was anyone on Olympus who was neutral, it was Athena. Anyone who would give her a straight answer and be unafraid to do so, it was the Goddess of Wisdom. She thought about Hades or Poseidon, neither of whom seemed to want to take any side in this debacle, but reaching them was so difficult. She could call for them but was unsure if they would hear her the way Ares could. She’d leave Olympus and go down to the seaside to find either of them but she was trapped here, unable to open the Gates that led to freedom and the outside world.

  Upon opening the door of her Temple to the call of a very faint and unexpected knock, Athena’s beautiful green eyes grew wide at the sight. “Alena?” Athena looked past the woman at her door for Ares, thinking he’d returned early but there was no sign of him. Alena looked terrible as she stood on the stoop with a split lip caking to a scab. “What can I do for you?”

  “May I come in, Lady? It’s very cold out here.”

  “Of course.” Athena stepped aside with a wave of her hand to allow Alena entry to the Temple. The little Fey didn’t look very well; she looked tired and confused. The Goddess of Wisdom led the way through the Gray Temple to the inner parlor where a bright fire burned in a marble hearth with a large loom set by it. A tapestry was in process upon it. “I don’t mean to be rude as I don’t often receive guests, but why are you here?”

  “Because you will tell me the truth.” Alena laid her coat over the back of a chair but didn’t take a seat. This was the first time she’d been in Athena’s home and Alena found it most inviting. Not what one would call homey with its décor all done up in varying shades of gray, but peaceful and calming. Athena didn’t seem to be big on furniture or art as the place held little of both, but what items it did have were of the finest quality and craftsmanship. “You are my son’s Godmother, for lack of a better word, and you seem to like Raven.”

  “I do.”

  Before she knew it, Alena abruptly spit out the question she’d come to ask, “Then you don’t think he’s evil?”

  Athena was taken aback at such an odd question posed by one’s own mother and she settled herself on her own throne. “May I offer you a refreshment? Food? Drink?”

  “No, thank you, Lady, please just answer me.”

  “Why would you ask if he’s evil? It’s such a strong word, especially for a mother to say of her son.”

  “It gives me no pleasure, Lady.” Raven did terrible things, horrible things; no matter how hard she tried he just got worse as time went by. Alena looked down at her feet. “I am his mother and I might be a Dark Fae; they’re evil. You can’t tell Ares, he doesn’t want anyone to know, but my powers are growing stronger than I ever thought possible.” Dropping her voice even lower and listening to it crack as she spoke, “I can control the wind,” Alena confessed, still amazed at the ability. “I can make tornadoes appear from nowhere and I’m afraid that I am a Dark Fae and that I have infected my son.”

  “Infected? Well then, hmmm. You can’t infect someone that way, Alena.” Athena was biding her time as she thought about what Alena said. Fae of either Kingdom weren’t renowned for their magickal abilities; in fact, their powers were infinitesimal compared to those of the Olympians or the Celtic Gods, and they would never grow beyond parlor tricks. The command of any Element was completely beyond their capabilities. Like her Brother, Athena thought it fitting that Ares who controlled Fire should fall in love with a woman who could control Air. They were a perfect complement to each other no matter what Zeus thought.

  “Passed it on to him then,” she corrected. “Cernunnos was my Grandfather, what if, what if…I got something from him?”

  “Yes you are.” They were broaching a very delicate subject and one Athena didn’t feel completely comfortable discussing. She stayed away from the old Olympian/Celtic Feud and had no desire to be drawn into such old business, but it was a subject not discussed with outsiders so Athena steered the conversation away
from the Great Horned One. “You talk about your power as though it’s a disease; it’s not. It’s a Gift. It doesn’t come from Cernunnos or your Fae heritage, not all of it anyway. Do you know where it comes from?”

  Alena was confused and shook her head. If it wasn’t Cernunnos or her being a Dark Fae, then she was nearly clueless. The only other thing it could possibly be was, “Ares. The ritual?” Ares told her that she was the source of his strength since then but she thought he was speaking metaphorically. As such, she’d never stopped to think that he was serious or that he might be the source of hers as well.

  “Yes. When he saved your life he gave up part of himself to do it. Part of his power and his strength now lives in you. That’s where your new abilities are coming from, so you see, you can’t possibly have passed anything evil on to Raven. His outlandish behavior is not your fault.” Athena frowned and again offered Alena a seat, hoping to ease the weight on the woman’s shoulders, and this time she accepted. It was a good thing, too, because from the way she was swaying on her feet Athena thought Alena would fall down at any moment. “You should never let Zeus worm his way into your head. The Fae of the Dark Lands are not evil, Alena; neither are you nor is Raven.” Although Athena would admit the boy was exceedingly advanced even for an Olympian, she would never say he was evil. “My Nephew simply takes after his Father a bit more than you would like. Ares was quite the handful when he was young—do you know he once set fire to an entire forest? Burned it right to the ground just because he wanted to see how far he could toss his fireballs. He was six. I could go on for years but you get my point, I’m sure. If it makes you feel any better then one could even say that Raven, after the Ritual, received a double-dose of Ares.”