24 AD

"Get in. Get the gate open. And Helix, don't die."

Helix's foot slipped on the blood-slick grass, as he mentally replayed Ynyr's parting words. Carnage and chaos, steeped in the coppery scent of death, surrounded him as he regained his footing. The mangled corpses of men he had killed lay around him.

In the shadows before dawn Helix had crept alone into Auzea, a fortress situated deep in the forest. He had slipped in through an unguarded drainage ditch. In fact, nothing had been guarded. It was as if the tribesmen, led by Tacfarin himself, thought themselves secure in this half burned out husk of a place. The few men who had spotted him inside the walls never got the chance to raise the alarm.
His first kill had spiked an adrenaline rush like he'd never felt before. Disgust, exhilaration and the very real possibility of discovery, alone and surrounded by enemies, had turned him ruthless. Now he stood in the center of the battle. Roman legionnaires under a centurion named Dolabella, had streamed through the gate he'd opened a few minutes prior. Only then did the tribesmen realize they were under attack.

An angry shout drew Helix's eyes. A man with light brown skin, a stocky build and the bearing of a soldier descended a short flight of stairs into the fray. Their eyes locked. As if drawn together by an invisible cord the two men found themselves face to face, sword to sword. In a heartbeat, Helix had taken in the man's weapon, a Romans weapon, his perfect fighting stance, and the clever way he returned the appraisal.

Staying mindful of his position and all the enemies still engaged in combat around him, Helix dropped his blade into a low guard waiting for the attack. "You must be Tacfarin."

The man's eyes narrowed, "You know me. I do not know you." He did not wait for a response before unleashing a hail of blows.

Helix parried, blocked and retreated three steps.  Tacfarin was strong and quick. Not as talented as the witch woman or Ynyr, but certainly well studied in the arts of death.

Sidestepping a thrust Helix responded with a slashing cut of his own. The point of his blade cut a gash in the cloth of  Tacfarin's tunic. The Berber commander retreated a step, his eyes narrowing. "Who are you?"

Helix pressed the attack, cutting first up the diagonal of his enemies body, then straight down. The first blow missed entirely the second Tacfarinas caught with his blade. As the swords caught and held in a bind the two men snarled at each other.

Between the space of two breaths, the air thickened. It was not the thickening like Helix had felt with Ynyr's with power. This was different. More subtle.

Tacfarin gave a loud growl, stepped free of the bind then resurged with blindingly fast attacks. The battlefield around them faded into the background as Helix devoted his entire skill set to fighting the man before him.

Block! Slash! Parry!

Curses flew from Helix's mouth as a glancing blow sliced the side of his head just above the ear. The cut was not deep, but still, blood gushed from it. Snarling through the pain the younger man blocked a blow meant to decapitate him and went on the offensive. Talented opponent or no, he was not going to die in this gods-forsaken place, at the hands of some rebel deserter!

Unleashing a flurry of blows, Helix shouted, "I am Helix Lycon!"

Tacfarin gave first one step to the onslaught, then another, and another. His eyes went wide. "You Can't...I am gods blessed!" Four more steps back and Helix's blade swept under his guard drove upward and impaled the Berber commanders throat.

A falcon's shrill wail filled Helix's ears as the dead man's body fell prone.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Helix's mind flashed to days earlier, shortly after landing in Carthage. Ynyr had just released the witch woman to go wherever she chose. As they watched her vanish into the city the commander had spoken in a serious tone.

"Remember when you fight something other then human the odds are always stacked against you. You are marked for death by a god. If you kill any of their children, their creations, or the gods blessed, chances are you will summon the god that cursed you and possibly the rest of them as well."

Unsure what else to say Helix asked, "Now what?"

"Now, we find the local centurion, make our presence known and wait for Dacuma to catch up to us and tell her the good news."

"What news?"

"That witch gave me the location of  Tacfarin and his troops."

*~*~*~*~*~*

The fluttering sound of flapping wings jarred Helix into awareness just as a falcon landed on the ground before him.

It was in that moment of silence, as the bird's wings folded to its sides, that he realized the sounds of battle had completely vanished. Head snapping around he found every man of both armies, standing as still as statues, staring blankly in various directions.

"Prince Helix Lycon, youngest son of Arcadian King Eumon Lycon, I give thee greetings." The voice, it's tone deep, came from the falcon.

Fear, but also a primal curiosity filled Helix. "Who are you?"

The bird extended its wings flapping gracefully. A few wing beats later the shape morphed before him. Its essence melted and flowed, growing and rearranging itself into the form of a man. The event was so quick, and smooth that Helix did not have time to even register what he was seeing until the transformation was complete.

He was every bit as tall as Helix's six foot four, if not a slightly taller, with light brown, shoulder length, hair cascading out from under a black hooded tunic. His attire, which clung perfectly to his sculpted body was solid black save for the stitching of blood red. However, it was the face of the stranger that really commanded Helix's attention. Light skin and angular features, partially covered by a short beard, made his glowing amber eyes stand out all the more.

If Helix had been his younger self he probably would have run from the sheer power evident in the being before him. As it was, the young man just stared. His face somehow falling into a mask of stony indifference.

The stranger tilted his head, amber, soul-scorching eyes looking Helix up and down thoroughly, "Ares."

His blunt, monosyllabic answer seemed to Helix like a demand for obeisance. Instead of giving any, Helix merely answered, "I can see why Sal would want to fuck you."

Ares blinked. The air stilling, as if nature itself was holding her breath. Then he threw his head back and laughed uproariously. The god's laughter continued for a few long moments before at last, he grinned at Helix and spoke, "You are perhaps more foolish than brave. Still. You and I must speak more.

"Tell me, is Dacuma lurking around here somewhere? I smell her on you. And her pet witch as well."

Helix considered his next words more carefully. He was after all the bait in Sal's trap. Things rarely went well for the bait.  Deciding he had no reason to lie to the god he nodded. "She was few miles back in a wagon. The commander is somewhere in this mess."

Ares' eyes flicked around settling on a point just past the gate. "Mmm. What is your part in this game human?"

"I think I played it. She promised me a favor in exchange for helping her find you."

"And was her fickle affection your favor?"

A cold lump formed in Helix's throat and stomach. Maybe he could smell their night together too? Even though it had been years ago? "No." The word came out as a spit. "I wanted no part of that."

His amber eyes flicked back to Helix, studying, assessing. "She can't remove your mark if that is what you are after."

Questions filled Helix. Why was Ares bothering with him? Would he kill him? He had plenty of reasons, the mark, Tacfarinas was probably blessed by him, so there was that too. And where was Sal if she wanted to find him so much? Shouldn't she be gliding into the fort to announce her presence? Also, why hadn't Ynyr given him instructions on what to do if Ares, the god of freakin war spontaneously appeared before him? The commander had obviously known it was a possibility when he'd warned Helix about killing the gods blessed. 

As for his favor. He still had not decided what he wanted from Sal. He had pondered removing the mark, asking to kill Zeus, if that was even possible, and even thrown around the idea of requesting she kill herself. Now looking at Ares, he did not have an answer.

The god seemed to read something of his internal monologue as he stared into Helix's face. "When did she promise you this favor?"

"Anytime I wished."

A feral smile flashed from Ares. "Will you work with me prince Lycon?"