Page 114 of The Cursed Chalice

Nyx chuckles. “Others trade in pride. But you, Ares, traded your eternity for love. That is a power none of the gods will understand.”

Her view switches to Soraya. Soraya’s nails dig into my palms. “You, mortal, broke the pattern and chose him when Olympus would have let you burn. You are not a reward; you are his equal. Let no god claim you. Rise with him not as a consort, but as a counterpart.”

Nyx’s hands rotate. The air swooshes, and the darkness thickens around Soraya and me. I feel her shoulders shiver.

“Power given, power taken away. The thread of godhood, a thread of rebirth, a thread of protection. When you awaken, you will be gods founded at the edge of the cosmos.”

I look down at my hands, and I feel a strength that I have never felt before. I can’t help but laugh.

Black clouds swirl around us.

“The god you served mocked you; the mortals you loved betrayed you. You are no longer theirs. You are mine.” Nyx closes her fist, and her purple eyes glow.

Soraya looks at me with wide eyes. “Ares? I feel…stronger.”

“You are gods to the Forgotten, of those unseen, unloved, cast aside. As the night welcomes you, walk together eternally.”

And just like that, she’s gone.

SORAYA

I shoot out of the bed naked and tumble to the floor. Ares scrambles after me.

The light from the sun beams into the room. “It was all a dream.”

Ares sits proudly and naked at the edge. “It was a dream. But you are a goddess now, Soraya.”

“Me, a goddess? What about Nisa?” I cry out .

Ares stands and rolls his shoulders, accepting his new power. “We will figure it out. But as for today,” he bends and picks me up in his arms. “You are now Soraya, Goddess of the Forgotten.”

I can feel energy flowing through my body with a small, pleasant tingling. “If I get to be at your side, I can be a happy goddess forever.”

Ares walks into the bathroom, kissing me on the head. “I love you.”

I sigh. “Now until forever.”

HECATE

I sit on the throne next to Nyx. The castle is made of dark clouds and mist. We both look at a new galaxy being born. “Thank you for finding them worthy, Nyx. Zeus is upset.”

Nyx nods and sips on her ambrosia. “Of course he is. Let Olympus remember it was not power that saved them. It was the love that Ares dared to sacrifice, to surrender.”

DEMIOS

“I can’t believe you never had a drunken s’more.” I roast my marshmallow over the fire.

Phobos shrugs. “It was never a need.”

The screams from within the bronze Sicilian bull don’t bother me nor my brother.

I throw another log under the bull as the people Inside the bronze body cook alive.

“Please let us out!” someone cries.

“Who is that? The aunt or Michelle?” Phobos asks as he places the marshmallow between the graham crackers.

I shrug. “I give a fuck about some things but not this. I don’t give a fuck about this.”

Phobos pauses, and I hear what he hears. A prayer? After the three of them tried to hurt Soraya, now they pray?

I lick the melted chocolate off my fingers. “Death is a privilege you will beg me for, but it’s a prayer I will never answer.”

Phobos picks up his beer and sips it. “This was just what I needed.”

I smile. “Justice with a side of torture?”

“Precisely.” Phobos places his beer at the side of the chair. “Now, tell me of the woman that you fell in love with in the Caribbean.”

THE END