Chapter Six

 

 

I wasn't the only one who Straton trained; all of the men worked on their fighting skills daily.

My bedroom offered the best vantage point to view their training. I had the only window in the tree, hidden among the branches so that it couldn't be seen from below. I could see down very clearly, though, and the view was spectacular.

Straton stood to the side, observing and correcting techniques as the other four paired off to fight each other with wooden training swords. Their muscles glistened with sweat, and their faces were set into ferocious lines. The slam of sword on shield was like tribal drumming as they grunted through the maneuvers.

I sighed, and someone laughed.

“They are most handsome and virile, are they not?”

I jerked around toward the sound of the feminine voice and saw a woman who could have been my twin. She smiled broadly and laid a graceful hand on my cheek.

“How are you, Daughter?” Aphrodite asked.

“You claim me as your daughter?” I asked in surprise.

“My husband made you into my image, using my blood and magic,” Aphrodite explained. “You are as much mine as a child I carried in my body.”

“Then why was it Dionysus who came to my aid, and not you?”

“Who do you think pointed out the injustice to Dionysus?” She smiled smugly. “I don't have the power to do this for you, but Dionysus does, and I know of his weakness for stranded women.”

“You tricked him into helping me on your behalf?” I chuckled.

“My darling girl,” she purred, “there is so much for you to learn about the power a woman can wield over a man. I've been watching over you, and I heard your conversation with the pixie.”

“About the men?”

“Yes.” Aphrodite edged closer to the window and stared down at the sweaty men, their muscles straining in the sunlight. She smiled broadly. “I heartily approve of them all. You shall have them, Pandora, and I will show you how to surmount any of their protests.”

“I would be most grateful.” I grinned.

“You are born of the Goddess of Love,” she declared. “You are a goddess in your own right, Pandora. The Goddess of Hope.”

“Hope?” I looked over my shoulder, to the jar tucked into a nook beside my bed, its lid chained into place.

The bed itself was in another nook formed out of the tree; a curved pedestal that flowed out of the trunk and held a mattress. Walls curved around it on either side, partially hiding the bed. There were crevices set with candles near the head of the mattress, and all about the room, but daylight was currently streaming in from the window, illuminating the polished wood. The only other object within the room was a wooden chest that I had brought with me from Greece, holding the meager belongings that Epimetheus allowed me to take. But the most important thing was the jar. I stared hard at it; the reminder of my broken promise.

“That's right.” She nodded at my look. “You are the Keeper of Hope now, but more importantly, you have magic of your own.”

“I do?”

“That pixie couldn't have taught you to fly if you didn't.” Aphrodite smirked. “No amount of meditating can make you fly. That's ridiculous.”

“No wonder Laren couldn't do it,” I said, and then my eyes widened. “Damn, Tinker Bell,” I hissed. “She could have killed me.”

“Tinker Bell knew instinctively that you could accomplish flight,” my mother waved her hand. “Dionysus made these beings to serve you. They would never hurt you.”

“Wow, that's a lot to be responsible for,” I whispered.

“This is your land, Daughter,” Aphrodite said. “Yes, you are responsible for it, but only in the most basic way. It is more beholden to you for its very existence.”

“All right.” I looked back out at the men. “What about them? How do you think I should handle them?”

“The pixie was partially right,” Aphrodite noted. “Thinking positive and acting with confidence will help. But you are a child of love, and that is where your power lies. You were given gifts by the gods because Zeus asked it of them, and he did so because he knew that a truly irresistible woman needed more than superficially beautiful. You needed the wisdom to woo a man, kindness to gentle him, and generosity to love him despite the faults that all men have. These things inside you have been put there with a purpose: to make a Titan fall in love with you.”

“Yes, but that didn't last, did it?” I huffed.

“Love needs to be maintained, and, at the very least, reciprocated,” she admonished me. “You did not care for Epimetheus; no amount of generosity and kindness could change your heart. I believe your heart knew it was meant for more than that fool.”

“Dear gods, I hope so.” I sighed. “I'm not alone, but I feel so lonely.”

“You are made for love.” Aphrodite kissed my cheek, and a tingle spread out from the place she touched me. “I bless you, Daughter, that you will not be lonely for long. Love will be drawn to you–the path to it shall open.”

“Thank you, Mother,” I whispered.

“Oh, darling, that's only the beginning.” She smirked. “Come and have a seat, and we'll have our own training session. And I've brought a gift for you too. Something to protect you in my stead.”

“I have the men to protect me,” I said. “And they are teaching me to protect myself.”

“That is all well and good, darling,” she purred. “But never refuse the gift of a goddess. My protection will make itself known when it's needed.”