Fates and Thrones

Despair

Two weeks. That is how long it took for Athenrún to send me on my first task. Two weeks of watching my sister wither away as she was forced to spend time with Kgosi. Aleesia had spent every night in my room, crying herself to sleep. Each time solidifying my decision to become the Goddesses Champion. Tonight, as I was stroking her hair and humming our lullaby, an owl sat on my windowsill. As I watched it, it tilted its head in a beckoning motion.

I gently laid Aleesia's head on the bed, watching as her golden hair formed a halo around her head. "It's time for me to go, Al. I love you, and I am doing this for you." A soft whimper was the only reply as she wiped her tears away again. I pushed myself out of bed before approaching the Owl. I glanced at its ankles noticing two notes. "Hey, Al, you know how you mentioned you made a deal with Brigid? Looks like she is collecting on you too."

The owl's wingspan stretched wide, its feathers reaching out like ghostly fingers, casting a shadow on the wall. Hoo-Hoo. An impatient call as I spoke to my sister. I shook away the remaining fear in my mind and reached out to the notes. Each was on small parchment paper, rolled into small scrolls. One was marked with a black rose, the other a pink lotus. I grabbed both and nodded to the Owl. "I will get some mice for your next visit." I was met with a slow blink before it turned and flew off.

As I nodded to the owl, my mind still reeled from the weight of the task. I turned back to Aleesia, tossing her the lotus flower scroll. My hands trembled as I broke the seal on the black rose scroll, the words within making my blood run cold. I felt time stop, there was no way this was what she wanted. My hands trembled as I reread it. No, I would not be able to survive this. There was no way. What could she want this for? The smooth parchment paper slowly being dampened from the sweat pouring from my palms. "No, no, no. Please. You're joking, right Athenrún?"

"You mean Isis, right AJ? What is your task? I must go to the den of the forgotten. I must fetch Freya's hawk-feathered cloak. I would have thought that would be offensive considering her Owl messenger." The hollowness of her words echoed throughout my thoughts. I barely heard her as I stared at the words on the page in front of me.

Enter the den of the forgotten,

Venture deep, deeper than any have before.

At the bottom of the endless cavern, you will find your item.

Fetch it.

But be warned, there are two guardians of said token.

One takes brute strength, the other takes intelligence.

You have one week to bring me Hade's Bident.

One week, to venture where no one has ever before. One week, to fetch something that belonged to one of the forgotten Gods. Athenrún mentioned a war, but I never imagined that I would be fetching weapons. Much less the main weapon of the God of Death. I looked up at my sister and shook my head. "One more time, Al? Where are you going?"

"The highest point of the den of the forgotten. Apparently, that is not the base level." Her blue eyes were sharp for the first time in the past fourteen days. "It says there are riddles for me to solve, and I have a week to get it and get back. Or I fail."

"We fail. But we will not fail. Mother taught us better than that." I looked at her before glancing at the brush sitting on my vanity. I shook away the thoughts of my mother's control and turned back to face my sister. "We take tonight, have the servants prepare us two nights of food. You will gather the stuff for camping that we will need, and I will gather the weapons. If anyone asks what you are doing tell them the prince is taking you camping."

I flinched as she grimaced at the mere thought of being alone in the woods with that monster. I felt jealousy simmer up accented with sizzling hot rage. Thoughts of what I would do to him if we were alone in the woods flooded my mind. I ripped up the parchment paper in my anger before tossing it on the ground. "Make sure the food we have will last us until we reach the Village of Errans."

I watched as she sat her note down and walked out of the bedroom. I grabbed her note, but all I could see was a blank piece of paper. "I hope that we will survive this," I spoke aloud to the empty space.