FOUR.

“We’re getting closer. I can feel it.” said Rode, feeling her strength deteriorate, every muscle in her body screamed for a release from the pain.

“You’re a crazy person! I shouldn’t have followed a crazy person into the middle of nowhere, replied Tiki, a tone of whining was in his voice, he was drenched with weariness, his head on the bark of a tree, hoping not to doze off in this dire circumstances, but he needed rest and his body wasnt so big on compromising.

As they both sat, trying to rest for the little time they saw fit to, the mosquitoes saw it possible to earn their daily wages in blood, swooping and swooshing with its annoying buzz and distasteful but necessary bite. Rode and Tiki responded by slapping their own necks and squashing the resilient bugs, when a cackling sound was heard, the sound of twigs snapping, further making their inbuilt danger alert to go off. They both stood up instinctively, with weapons in their hand to ward off any predators. “Show yourselves weakling! . . .” shouted Rode, fiercely.

She itched for a battle ever since she stepped into the forest; her heart thumped faster and her mind clicked into a primitive mode of kill or be killed. She hadn’t finished talking before an aggressive group of warriors came forth, emerging from the bushes which they hid in, they were not more than a dozen, but their faces held a frown and scars were etched on their foreheads of a cultic pentagon, the aggravated assaulters wore leopards skins, with dirt rubbed all over their body, armed with hammers, mauls and a maces was held firmly in their respective hands, by all means they weren’t here to pay greetings.

“You’re the last of them. We’ve hunted down and killed all contenders who are competing for the golden apple. This should be won by us the cult of De Minimis. You brawny one will die first, then you squeamish one you die next,” sneered the leader of the cult, pointing towards the siblings.

She was spiteful to look at, with a thick muscled body and an abrasive rather hideous face. Rode only grunted and lunged towards two cult men without a hint of fear in her body, her sword glistened as it tasted the reflection of the sunrays, as she plunged deep into the assailants body before he could draw his weapon, he was too slow for the brute force of her sword.

The second cult-woman held her mace in the air, then drove with an intensity towards Rode, who dodged the blow and deflected another timely attack away, her sword leaped to the attackers head, severing her head in a blink of an eye, she held the severed head by the hair and watched the dead attackers body crumple to the pool of blood it created.

Tiki on the other hand, retreated, a maul swooshed by his face, almost cracking his skull and Hera forbid, his pleasing face. He held the fur of one of his attackers, as he tried to find balance after almost falling over by a broken branch that stuck in his way, it was both sad and confusing as Tiki stared into his attackers eyes, and sliced his stomach open, relieving the assailant of his warm guts. She couldn’t stay to hear the after effects of the injured man grimacing in pain, as he dodged away with a quick pace as a collective effort of two women trying to decapitate him, with great speed he stabbed both women in their chest, with the two daggers held by both of his hands, the opposing women winced in pain as they fell slowly to the ground. The cult leader stared at the body of her fallen soldiers, shaking and trembling in denial, before she ran with tails behind her legs.

“Well, that was really exciting wasn’t it?!” shouted Rode, breathing intensely while enjoying thrills of battle, satisfaction was what she felt, the kind that the spilling of blood do give, personally she wasn’t appalled by the consideration of being called brawny one.

“As I said before,” replied Tiki. “You’re a crazy person.”

They left the remains of the dead men in that part of the forest, seeing it fit to simply hide the dead with broad branches, then leave nature to do its thing and take its toll, then the duo continued for several moment, perhaps if the siblings had walked too fast or too slowly they would’ve missed it, but such a sight was hard to miss, that even a blind scrooge would’ve felt the warmth that radiated from such a sacred place.

Just miles beneath them, a tree with golden leaves hung on branches of bronze, connected to a trunk of silver in which the roots sank into the middle of the shallow stream, strings of light pierced their eyes as they attempted to stare at the trees way, it was the golden tree brightly lit as the sunlight deflected around them like a spectrum as they trotted closer.

“There it is. Our key to the Herean games!” exclaimed Rode. Joy wasn’t what she always felt, anger was part of her, lust came but nothing could satisfy her, the blood-spills of battle only lasted for but a moment, but this feeling of joy she felt was strange and empowering. She didn’t know what to do with the twitch of a smile that etched on her face in ecstasy.

“Wow! Its beautiful, what a marvelous sight, such details in wondrous brilliance, its more beautiful than all the women of Ishtar combined! . . . yeah, now let’s get a golden apple and get out of here,” said Tiki. “This place gives me the creeps.”

“I bet its more beautiful than the general, your prostitute.” said Rode. She leaped into the clayey shallow stream and fetched a golden apple from the tree, it was the last one of the fruits, it was forbidden to eat amongst mortals, because of its strong abilities of recuperation.

“Forgive me for believing you had forgotten about that trivial act. Which by the way I wasn’t left along to finish in grand style, so don’t blame me either. I never thought it possible that you both had been previously dating.” replied Tiki, he was always so clever in words and thoughts, that was how he snapped away victims to steal their hearts, but he mostly tried not to anger his sister, fearing the battering that may ensue after it.

Rode didn’t hate the sin and loved the sinner, she did hate the sin of course, but dealt with the sinner more aggressively, such was her way and everyone knew that.

Moments went by and the sun retired for the day into an orangey glow, and the clouds turned grey, with the moon prepping to make an appearance as it peaked in a faded status in the skies. The duo once more pried opened the gates of the Forest of Terborg, this time to escape back into civilization. Time flies by, when almost being killed by cult people. With no haste and weary bones they made their way to the palace, their home, on arriving there, a figure appeared at the gates, the Regent Pantea Arteshbod stood at the front of the gates, with her hands at her back.

She wore a slender tight fitting black lace gown that showed off her hour-glass figure, she always wore a dark mask, beneath the mask was hidden a rather fetching and ravishing face, which was being hidden in the memory of her late mate (Who died in battle of Gerioha.) her blue eyes were the only thing in view as her face was looked upon, her hair was trussed back unburned by a bow, she stood motionless now, her aura radiated a strong willed woman who was stressed by the rigors of ruling.

Tiki and Rode knelt down, showing their possession to the Regent, a gasp of astonishment escaped their mothers lips at she gazed upon the luminous glowing fruit, of course she knew what it is, they had been stories from generations past of its very existence, she had heard its tales when she was a babe, and by chance she never thought she would see one in her mortal lifetime, her surprise became extinguished, as soon as Rode stepped forward to speak, a crowd of onlookers had gathered to witness this queer event, surely its gossip will echo in the pubs and markets of this dense settlement.

“Great Regent of the city of Ishtar! The beauty of the patron goddess (Aphrodite) is upon you. We your children hail your presence before us. But we have to surrender our lineage here, to fulfill a right as a citizen of this illustrious city. We have come, not empty-handed but with the fabled golden apple to prove that we are ready and worthy to represent this city in the Heraen games. boomed Rode. With a cordial tone normally unprecedented by her.

“You have done well, my children. And by traditions . . . you both are entitled to represent this city to excellence, go forth and rejoice for come the next crescent moon you both will be heading towards city of Juventas, and you will bring our city victory.” said the Regent. Her lips held a fragile smile, but it was difficult to read her actual facial expression with the mask on. They left the presence of the Regent after a short while.

***

Moans upon screams of pleasures was emerging from the room of Tiki, the victors wanted to celebrate their win with wild sex and the numbness that comes with too much fermented bottles of wine, they frequently partied and often dined till they outlasted their fill.

Lost in the thrills of the exuberance of youth; music blaring from the finest of trumpeters and drummers, with naked men and women dancing and participating in the age long ritual of the sex orgy, enjoying the lush of the royal life, that no one could hear the bashing and intruding of the room door by their furious mother; her eyes held the expression of death. “Everybody out now!” she screamed outrageously. “I never thought of it as I gave birth to you both that Id be utterly disobeyed and then humiliated in public by two of my own children. If it had been only Rode I wouldve understood, seeing shes made it her lifework to detesting me, but you Tiki! . . .I trusted you. I warned you both not to go do such a foolish thing as this.” said the Regent with a stern tone, while glaring daggers at both Rode and Tiki.

“We are very sorry, mother. Yeah, Rode made me do it; you know how she gets when she’s obsessed with something.” Tiki said fearfully, he was trembling and shivering in the guilt of disappointing his mother, he dreaded this feeling he had.

“We had to do it. There was no other way around it.” Rode said, looking down towards the ground, trying to be apologetic, but a rebellious spirit that cant be quenched was aloof in her heart; she was so close to her goal now.

“You foolish children have just signed the death warrant of your impending doom.” whispered Pantea Arteshbod.