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Star Crossed Lovers - by Rosalind Newman
APOLLO, CHARIS AND CLEISTHENES
A god who thinks the world of himself must, of course, possess whatever he desires from the world of men. But Ares, god of war –vain, cruel but oh so breathtakingly handsome Ares- had a fickle heart. He endlessly pursued the fairest mortal women that the Earth had to offer him, and they in return were doubtlessly flattered to be the object of such a god’s desire. But Ares always grew bored. And if a god was no longer to possess these lovely creatures, then certainly no mortal man ever would. So Ares kept them: their beauty preserved for eternity as pinpricks of light in the thick velvet cloak of the midnight sky.
That is, until one day Ares gazed down from the clouds of Mount Olympus and fixed his azure eyes on fair Charis.
‘That is surely the most beautiful creature I have ever seen,’ declared Ares. ‘She will be my bride.’
But Charis refused, for her heart belonged to another: Cleisthenes. A warrior from the great city of Troy, whose courage and strength surpassed all those he met in battle.
Yet Ares liked a challenge; he appeared to her in all his shining glory to proclaim his undying love, he sent lavish gifts of gold and exquisite perfume, he promised her a wealth of eternal life, but Charis could not be bought. Cleisthenes
had won her heart with his kindness and his passion, and she had long since sworn to him her loyal devotion.
Ares’ determination knew no bounds, however, and he pursued her relentlessly. He sent fleets of majestic peacocks, fountains of wine, gardens of roses the exact violet hue of her beautiful eyes; but Charis could not be swayed. Angrily, Ares resorted to threats. He burned her village to the ground, reduced an entire year’s crop to smouldering ash, ran dry the rivers of Greece: the ground trembled with the pounding of his mighty spear, but Charis remained true to her vow.
Ares’ frustration mounted. As a god of the highest order he was well accustomed to having his every wish
granted, and never before had any mortal dared to defy the word of the fearsome War God. Aboard his gilded chariot he stormed down from the cloudy heavens to seize Charis and carry her away to the slopes of Mount Olympus as his bride. But Cleisthenes was waiting for him. He hurled his sword at the wheels of the mighty chariot, stopping it in its tracks.
“Charis is mine,” he choked “I love her, and she, me. You can not have her.”
Dismounting, Ares withdrew the glittering blade, eyes blazing, his handsome features twisted in a cruel sneer.
The fight was long and bitter, and high above all the gods and goddesses fought with it. Eris, goddess of strife, gleefully supported the carnage unleashed by her brother. The delicate Aphrodite, goddess of love, insisted that a love so strong, even among mortals, must be protected. Yet inspite of his distain, Zeus could not allow a son –even a son as despised among the gods as Ares- to meet defeat at mortal hands. Cleisthenes fought bravely, but for every blow he dealt, Ares’ mighty spear beat down upon him ten-fold. And as 1 | 2 NEXT |
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