The Pomegranate's Bloom

The morning was finally in high glory, blowing away the thick clouds as the sun radiated throughout the land with his smile that praised life. 

Like his sensibility, a winning smile spread across his chiselled face as he looked down on those pitiful silver eyes begging for sanctuary. 

"Now you know what it feels like to be on the lower rank, Athena," Ares murmured—blowing at her face as he exerted dominance over her. 

While the little owl and her new master were silently duelling, from a near distance, Enyo was observing like a mad volcano deliberately seething in great envy. 

Oh, how the goddess hated such sight to see Ares smiling in a manner she had not seen before. Even she knew Aphrodite had not made him grin as he did now while staring intently at his presumed foe. Athena was not in the same spirit as she noticed. However, she assumed she was just an actor pretending to feel anger despite feeling the opposite. 

And bolted from the blue, Ares carried Athena and mounted her to his horse, causing much surprise to everyone who saw. Once Athena settled, the god requested Pantelis to go further and lead the important task in the port. 

"Do what we had planned, Pantelis." He hushly told him. "Let us be discreet. Enyo knew what to do but if you found something important, get it!"

"I understand, my lord." The old right-hand man bowed and obediently complied with his order. 

"Thank you." Ares sincerely responded. "I have something to attend to. Something quite urgent."

Pantelis nodded and commanded the rest of the troops to follow him. 

When Ares finally climbed and settled on his horse with Athena fairly cradled in front of him like a weak foundling, they trotted back the opposite way—returning to the megaron before the sun reached its peak. 

Ignored and abandoned, Enyo could not do anything but stare in despair as the god of war and his prey rode back to their abode. 

The wave of jealousy was rising quicker—drowning her soul and sanity as her head grew weary with the thought of what Ares might do to Athena. Her mind supposed the worst possibility—swirling on the idea that the two might repeat what happened between him and Aphrodite, yet this time, there was no Hephaestus's chain to capture them in the act. 

"You ruined everything, Athena." She mumbled, glaring furiously at the fading view of Ares and his captive. 

Haemona drew to her mistress's side, wanting to ease her temper. But because of fear, she could only stand still and say nothing, letting the air at least bring comfort to the fiery head of Enyo. 

***

Once his dark steed was returned to the stable, Ares dragged Athena to his quarters and formally addressed something he wanted to tell her. 

"I see now you are becoming desperate." He oddly chortled—jovially enjoying his win. 

Seeing his face infuriated her more. His grin irked her, evoking despondency knowing it was the smile of a god who had longed for her demise.

"And I see you are enjoying it." She retorted lowly. 

"I would be lying if I said I did not, Athena. Pardon me, but looking at you bare and struggling—here," After his amber eyes wandered to the fair lady's bare chest, Ares tossed his red cape at her. "Cover yourself with that. I always knew you look lovely in red."

Athena grumbled, consumed by the longwinded shame and tantrum that dared to explode at any moment. 

"Don't speak nonsense! There is no need to be shy about your breasts. I have already seen every part of you! Your smell and your distinct taste idled on my very senses."

Upon hearing his impervious notion, Athena launched at him—pulling all her strength as she pinned him to the wall. 

"Say that again or I will—"

"What? Kill me?" Ares mocked. 

"I—I do—I do not want to hear it!" Athena, at last, bemoaned. "I do not want to remember what happened between us. I do not want to know what transpired that night! I—I could not bear to think of it as I am now trying to for—" And before she could deliver her sentiment, tears began to sting her silver orbs while her hands angrily crumpled the fabric on Ares's chest. "I wanted to for—forgive you. I wanted—I tried but—"

"Shh," Ares purred, closing in on her as he strangely enclosed her in a warm embrace. "You do not need to feel those kinds of emotions, Athena. What I did was only to protect you."

"Protect me?" Athena snapped as she pulled herself out of his sickening embrace. "Are you out of your wits, Ares? Protect me from what? Protect me from who exactly? The only thing I needed protection was from you! When you killed the Pantheon and destroyed Olympus, you should have killed me as well! I do not want to be entangled by your selfishness! Oh, by Zeus's spirit, I dreaded the day I woke up from the chaos and hoped to be finished rather than suffer under your rule! 

Say no more of what happened between us the other night! Oh, say no more of it! What more do you need from me? You already gained what I shielded for so long! You already have it! You—you and Anubis forcefully took it away from me!" She screamed, continuously beating his hard chest with her deteriorating forte as her mind violently flashed all those haunting scenes that took away her sanctity. 

His kiss, his hard body over her, even his scent that merged with hers—every detail was gnawing Athena's head. With every montage, Anubis's face morphed into Ares, repeating many times until her mind was numbed with all the recollections pounding in her brain. 

Athena was petrified—she was motionless as anxiety ate her little by little. Her eyes grew wide and her breathing heavied while her senses became jaded with every second lost. Flashes of the horrible rendezvous were crushing her remaining wit and no sooner, did she remember Paeon and Vivinna's family. She remembered the lovely children and how beautiful and innocent they were. She was then pacified when she remembered her promise to them. 

"I—I must go!" She exclaimed while staring blankly into the space without even noticing Ares was hugging her again. 

"Work on the vineyard? I do not know if you will have the chance. Oh, Athena, you still do not understand my intentions—do you? I did what I had done because Eris and Enyo sold you to Anubis in exchange for the ships. A protective instinct got into me—ordering my head to do so. I do not want any mortal to have you as someone to feed their fantasy."

Yet his reasonings struck the wrong sentiments. Athena looked up, mortified to know of everything he just said. "Protective instinct?" She frankly stressed out with ferocity in her voice. "Ares, have you not heard me? You and Anubis stole what I truly treasured. You took away my dignity! You two bewitched me to do your vile bidding!"

"There is no Anubis, Athena!" In slow annoyance, Ares explained further. "I killed Anubis before he could touch you! I would not permit it! Why must he have the finer things in life when I have you first?" Athena was shocked—panicking as his hold around her tightened, preventing her from breaking away. "My first plan in ruling Olympus might have shattered but in my new kingdom—at least I know now I am doing the right thing. If I am to rule, I want someone by my side, someone who can advise me, who will never leave me, and someone wise. Why look farther when I have you? You are the perfect match—the perfect balance!"

"Unhand me!" Athena screamed, pushing him away with all her strength as his face drew closer to hers. "Let me go!" 

"I know of the family you wanted to save. My vultures reported your whereabouts and told me of the two children who spotted them. Is that the family you said you wanted to save?" He interrogated, forcing her mouth to release an answer as his grasp became tighter every second. 

"Do—do not—do—oh, please do not hurt them!" She implored with every untamed tear that trickled on her pale cheeks. "They—they are lovely—lovely people!" She added before being besieged by the lack of air in her lungs.

"Then all I need is your acceptance to rule with me. Think you it, Athena, you will not tire yourself in the vineyard and you can pardon that family." 

As their debacle transposed into a threat, Ares's embrace had turned fiendish.

Consumed and overwhelmed, Athena passed out before their lips could seal such a forbidden covenant. 

"Athena—Athena!" The god of war fretted as he carefully revived her. "Athena!" He called her once more. 

But despite his effort, the silver-eyes beauty remained motionless in his arms—dreaming away the fatigue and nightmare that suddenly manifested. 

With his determination left in vain, Ares carried her and laid her gently on his bed, hoping that her vigour would return and she would, finally, submit to his proposal. "None of these women can surpass you, Athena. I cannot rule a kingdom in instability like Zeus and Hera did. I want no more of it!" He softly murmured while gently combing the tangles on Athena's head.