Chapter 17

Athena stood at the precipice of light, the border where there stood no grey it simply turned to a cacophony of black shadows. Behind her was a life she already recognized ahead was the mystery of the unknown and yet the shadows seemed had an eerie familiarity to it, more so than the light.

An echo of voices reverberated from the shadows, each speaking in a different language, some she recognized some she did not. Some belonged to this world while the others did not.

"Ghesto ghesto…. Triceghta trilght... remosec guyhituyu lihkof"

"Viens, viens, laisse-moi te consumer ... te consumer jusqu'à ce que tu t'entremêles avec moi."

"Ven, déjame consumirte ... consumirte hasta que te entrelaces conmigo".

"Komm komm, lass mich dich verzehren ... verbrauche dich, bis du dich mit mir verflechtest."

«Давай, давай, позволь мне поглотить тебя ... поглотить тебя, пока ты не переплёшься со мной».

"Veni veni me, et devoret te, donec te conterat ... INTERNECTO mecum".

"Come come let me consume you... consume you till you intertwine with me."

Each voice interlaced as one, and yet every flavor uniquely heard. Every language standing out. Be it male or female they seemed one and yet different.

And then it all changed, the voices suddenly silenced. And from the abyss of darkness arose a voice, one she recognized and yet paradoxically she knew she had never heard it. A name formed on her lips,

"Caibre"

"Come back to me, my goddess. Come back to your Lord…" The voice sounded desperate, so broken.

Ever consuming.

The voice instilled a feeling of heartbreak and pain in Athena, an emotion she could not understand. He was not Christian but he was something. He was her something.

The voice was not human but neither was he but he was hers. And a part of her was his.

The light behind her seemed to start turning to a shade of grey and red, the allure it held a few moments ago slowly beginning to fade. He was consuming her again.

A wave of translucent figures arose from inside, singing. Seducing her until it took the shapes of beautiful women. They stood there naked, bereft of any clothing, their hands dancing against a man. Athena could not see his face but she knew she had to run. As far away as she could before she stepped in. She saw her own foot dangling at the edge, tempted to walk to the group of women that stood there around him.

Suddenly, the smell of musk, pine and what she could only describe as fire invaded her senses.

The man turned around, panic evident in his face. His eyes filled with fear and yet Athena was sure that the fear they held was not for his own well-being but hers. He was shackled in chains, his body in nothing but a loincloth.

Red blood dripped down his neck, as the naked women bit down on Christian's neck. The air was charged with a raw sexual undertone. The women moved their hands along his shoulders, their fingers slowly etching down his body. Spreading the blood from his neck down his chest, their nails leaving marks. Her fingers traced his abs painting each line red before her fingers traced the edge of the loin cloth, her nails hooking into the waist of the cloth that Athena was not sure how it wrapped around his waist without a cloth. She tugged at it hard, the loud sound of the cloth shredding echoed through the silence, drowning out the raising storm behind Athena.

And there he stood bare. Beautiful beyond imagination. Athena could not help but want to kneel down on her knees and join the women in worshipping her Christian. And yet somewhere Athena knew this was not worship, this was torture.

One of them, a blonde with big breasts took Christian's wrist and pulled his shackled hand to her breast, cupping his palm against her translucent skin. She threw her head back as she moaned.

And yet another knelt down now on her knees, her tongue gliding against the strong muscles of his right thigh, tightening in recoil and disgust as she brushed her nipples against the inside of his legs, raising herself so that her lips teased his cock.

A rage so wild arose from Athena's throat that she barely heard the loud clapping of thunder above her. She missed the encroaching shadows surrounding her. She failed to notice the fading light.

"He is mine!" She shouted. Her voice so loud that the women stopped and turned to look at her.

She raised her feet to walk to them, when she heard Arsenio.

"No! Don't go. They will consume you. He will consume. Both of them will, until all your light is gone and all that is left is darkness with in. Come with me… I am not your darkness… let me be your light. Save yourself from them!"

"I…I…" Athena was conflicted.

Conflicted between the broken voice, the broken man and now the desperate loving eyes. She loved them all after all.

Arsenio stretched out his hand, repeating over and over, asking her to come to him, back to the light.

But their voice began to echo as a pained groan escaped Christian's lips. That's when she knew. She chose him. She would always choose him, even if darkness consumed her for it.

With a tears rolling down her cheeks she turned to look at Arsenio one last time.

"It's always going to be me!" Caibre's broken voice echoed with laughter.

"No matter what you do… no matter what path she walks, every road will end with darkness. Our darkness. And I will always keep hoping that she does not. I love her more than myself and I am beyond saving. Why? Why? Does she always choose to save us than live happily with you?"

Athena stepped into the darkness, as all three of them screamed a 'no'.