Silent Revelations

   I ride through the hills, Phobos carrying me with light feet as we make our way up the road toward a landmark that I have spotted upon the top of the mountain. At a distance, it appears to be a temple of Zeus.

I feel that this is the best place for me to go for the purpose I intend to fulfill. I do not intend to worship for I am long past the point of any kind of spiritual atonement. It is not a self-pitying statement, but rather an establishment of pure truth.

I see a shadow passing alongside me, cold and unforgiving in its dark movement. I cannot discern its exact shape, but I know that it is nothing alive that is following me.

It is something deeper and more troubling. Almost like a ghost of the past coming to haunt me in some way or another. I welcome it with grimness and stoicism. I know I cannot alter its path and determination to seek me out, because it is rather a shadow of my mind. It has come to bother me and me alone.

The top of the mountain is growing ever nearer. I am in no great rush, but I maintain a steady pace simply because I am so unaccustomed to any sort of peacefulness. It is misthios instinct to keep moving forward.

The sky is starry tonight, but the moon is nonexistent. However, I can make out the vague shape of it in the sky above me. It is fitting. A life has waned recently, and it disappeared much too soon from the earth.

Phobos slows to a walk in the wake of the temple, and I pull on the reins gently, bringing him to a stop. I dismount carefully and stroke his neck thoughtfully, my mind not truly focusing upon my actions. He nudges me gently with his velvety nose, snorting quietly. He seems to almost sense my feelings.

It makes sense that I get along with animals better than people. They are so much more trustworthy and loyal than the human race. And they are not so easily disappointed or angered.

With one final pat, I turn to face the temple and I begin to climb up the side, hauling myself up the architecture. My movements feel a bit more sluggish and laborious tonight. Perhaps it's because of my solemn mood.

I pull myself upon the roof, habitually steadying myself. But it isn't that steep of an incline. There is a small elevated bit of the building that appears to be accessed from the inside of the temple. It appears to be some sort of topside place of worship. It must be for the rich and powerful of the area, because it is only big enough for about three people to comfortably fit and it has various expensive offerings.

It is odd, considering the fact that everyone is supposedly equal in the sight of the priests. Since it is not able to be seen from the front of the temple and is barely visible around the sides, its presence is likely not known by the poorer members of the community.

It will do for my purpose. I will only be here for one night. Perhaps not even that long.

The platform is not very high up, but nevertheless, it is tall enough that I cannot simply step upon it. So, I leap and grab the edge, hoisting upward so that I land upon my feet with relative ease.

Once I am up, I stop for a moment to enjoy the view. There are dots of fiery light upon the ground sprawling below the hillside, but the aspect of the view I am most particularly drawn to is the stars. They twinkle and glow and it almost seems as if I could grow lost in the vastness.

I lower myself to the floor and feel the sweet feeling of relaxation upon finally relieving my feet of their sometimes-overwhelming duties.

Silently I sit tonight, contemplating all that has happened in my journey. My father is not truly my father, my brother is still alive and is now the primary weapon of a group that is bent upon the destruction of Athens and Sparta, and I am only a ship's ride away from seeing my mother for the first time since I was a child. And to think that not so long ago, I led such a simplistic life where all of my family was deceased or, at the very least in some instances, dead to me.