By Ronan
This story contains scenes of graphic sex between a man and a woman. If you are under 18 or if this is illegal where you live, please go away.
Iolaus belongs to Universal Studios and Pacific Renaissance. No copyright infringement is intended. The author is just having fun.
There is someone in the forest. The leaves whisper of a presence and the breeze carries the scent of a stranger yet there is no urgency in this warning; strange. My curiosity is aroused as I seek the mortal who has dared invade my forest.
He walks quietly among the trees. A golden shadow gliding through the forest, at ease with his surroundings. Unaware that he is watched, or is he? Twice now he has paused, straining for some sense of what has disturbed him but the moment passes and he moves on. And I, I continue to watch and wait.
Distress. I feel it whisper through me like a breeze across my face, it draws my attention away from the stranger. A small sound, barely noticeable and yet he hears it too. I watch as his hands part the deep grass at the base of a tree, revealing the source of the cries. A baby bird has fallen from its nest and now lies helpless on the ground. I hold my breath and wait. I cannot interfere.
He surprises me. This mortal with hair like sun-kissed gold and eyes the color of a summer sky. I watch in wonder as he carefully returns the baby to its nest. Perhaps this time I think to myself.
The shadows lengthen as I watch and I feel the soft kiss of darkness beginning to fall. The mortal too has sensed the passage of the sun and there seems to be more purpose now to his movements. He has reached the river that marks the heart of my forest and is preparing a place to rest for the night. Quietly he gathers wood for a fire and carefully lays it out but he does not light it and I begin to worry.
He spreads his blanket next to the spot where his fire will be and then lays his few possessions on it. All but two, his bow and a quiver of arrows. My heart sinks as I watch him slip away into the gathering darkness. The mortal has become a hunter.
A rustle of leaves, he raises his bow and releases his arrow. His aim is true and his smile is a flash of sunlight amidst the gloom of the evening. Eagerly he collects his prize and makes for the river nearby, blissfully unaware that he is mine now, my lawful prey. From the moment he loosed his arrow. Now the hunt truly begins.
I feel the sorrow of the forest, the angry call for revenge and know the mortal must pay the price for his folly. Life for Life. It is the law of my forest and I must deal its justice. No mortal has ever hunted here and lived to tell of it.
He is aware that something has changed, I can see it in his stance as I draw my own bow. He holds himself so still and tests the air around him, listening, feeling, searching for the danger. Stay still beautiful one, make this easier for me and I will make your death as painless as I can.
I sight along my arrow, aiming for his heart and for the first time in all the long years I doubt what I must do. Yet I have no choice, the forest cries for justice. I hesitate. Only a moment, the span of a breath and then send the arrow on its way. I close my eyes as my heart breaks.
A cry, a shout. His or mine I'm not sure which. I step out of the shadows in which I have hidden and open my eyes, determined to see to his body after the fashion of mortals and find myself gasping in shock instead. He stands before me, whole, uninjured when I thought to find him lifeless on the ground. He holds the knife he was using as a weapon. My arrow is lodged in the ground beside him.
My mind is spinning as he faces me and demands an explanation. I can hear the wild pounding of his heart and smell the sweat of fear yet he faces me calmly waiting to hear what I will say. I watch his eyes as I tell him of his crime and of the punishment the forest demands. I see fear there still but there is courage as well as he apologizes for what he has unknowingly done. His voice is like music and it shivers through me. 'Is there no other way?' he asks. It is the closest his proud soul can come to begging for his life and we both know it.
I shake my head in sorrow and slowly raise my bow again. He does not run from me, though the scent of his fear wraps thickly around both of us. As I draw my arrow back I once more meet his eyes. 'Please' they beg of me, 'is there no other way?' though he will not say the words. My arms tremble as I hold the bow taut. Must I do this thing? My own question echoes through the will of the forest, Can there not be another way? Life for Life. The answer comes back as it always has, life for life.
I draw a breath and prepare to release my arrow. Our eyes meet one last time and I see an acknowledgement of my sorrow in his. He knows that I do not wish to take his life. He turns to face me fully and I see forgiveness in his eyes as he prepares himself.
NO! I cannot do this! The silent cry is a rejection of all that I am, all that I have ever been. I fling the bow away and wait for the forest to strike at me for this betrayal. I sense the mortal has not moved as we both wait for whatever will come. The silence deepens until it seems to press down upon me.
Life for life, my daughter.
Life for life, my son.
I hear the mortal gasp as the soul of the forest speaks to us both. There is meaning in my mother's words beyond the one I thought I knew and I wonder if the mortal understands. I turn to ask him and find he is close to me now. As I once more meet his eyes the riddle becomes clear to me. Life for life, there IS another way. Slowly I reach out to him and feel the warmth of his hand in mine as he leads me back to the place he prepared.
The rising moon bathes his face in silver light as he brings his hands up to cup my face and lowers his lips to mine. I never dreamt that a mortal could taste so sweet or that mortal kiss could hold such wonder. "Life for life?" his whispered question asks much more than the simple words. I smile. "Life for life."
There are no words between us now as he gently lays me down on his blanket. His arms wrap around me, pulling me against him as he kisses me again. I feel the heat of him against every part of my body. I feel his tongue trace the outline of my lips and part them for him. His tongue darts in, caressing, teasing my own, inviting; what I am not sure. I moan in protest as his mouth leaves mine but my protest is quickly stilled as he begins to nibble on my ear and then my neck. My hands caress his back under the ragged vest he wears. Hard muscle under satin skin. My breath quickens.
I feel his hands upon my tunic, loosening the laces. He pulls back long enough to help me free myself of its encumbrance and I return the favor by removing his vest. I am growing impatient. I want to feel his skin against mine. I want to feed this fire he has begun in me. I want.
His hands caress my breasts and I gasp as he lightly brushes a nipple with his thumb. His mouth blazes a trail of fire down my throat and I moan as he runs his tongue around my nipple. I bury my fingers in his golden curls and pull him towards me as he finally takes my breast in his mouth and begins to suckle it. My back arches to bring me closer to him and I feel the fire within me grow and begin to pool between my legs. I need.
His hand once more wanders. This time across my taut stomach and then lower, closer to the source of the fire that is consuming me. His hand pauses as it brushes the thatch of hair that nestles between my thighs and I wonder dimly when I removed my skirt. The thought is quickly forgotten as his hand moves to caress my most private area. His touch sends the fire leaping through my veins and my legs part to give him better access. "Please!" I am begging him though I do not know what I am asking for. He seems to understand what I need and his hand begins to rub the fold of flesh driving me wild with a desire I have never known before.
I groan in protest as I feel him pull away from me, my hands clutch at his shoulders trying to pull him back. "Shhh" he soothes me with a whisper. Sitting up he quickly removes his boots and then stands his hands undoing the fastenings of his pants. Suddenly he is naked before me and I can only stare in awe at the full glory of him. Then he smiles at me and it is as if the sun is suddenly shinning again. I am burning in his fire, being consumed by it.
I hold out my arms and he comes to me. I feel the weight of his body on top of mine. The hardness of his manhood pressed against my thigh. Then he is easing himself into me. There is a brief moment of pain quickly gone and the fire is building once more. As I feel him move within me it blazes up, consuming me in its incandescent heat. For the first time I feel fear, will there be anything left of me? He senses my fear and once more responds, soothingly, "Trust me." I look deep into his eyes, and surrender the last small piece of my soul.
The flames overtake me then. I am burning and yet, I am also part of the fire. An ember soaring aloft, carried up by the roar of the flames. I hear his voice crying out wordlessly and know that he too has been consumed by this fire we created.
Slowly I drift down. The fires extinguished for now. Wrapped in his arms I know a contentment I have never felt before. I listen as his breathing slows and he stills. His body wrapped around mine he sleeps with his head on my shoulder. I am content.
I watch my golden hunter as he quickly passes beyond the bounds of my forest and wonder if he will ever return this way again. I wonder if he will remember me as I will him. He takes with him nothing of me beyond a few memories, but he has left a part of himself with me and I will treasure it along with the gift of his name: Iolaus.